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Alaska Statutes.

Title 21. Insurance

Chapter 79. Alaska Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Association Act

Section 20. Scope.

AS 21.79.020. Scope.

(a) This chapter applies to a policy and contract specified in (b) of this section and to a person who

(1) except for a nonresident certificate holder under a group policy or contract, is the beneficiary, assignee, or payee of a person described in (2) of this subsection; and

(2) except in the case of an unallocated annuity contract or a structured settlement annuity, is the owner of, or a certificate holder under, the policy or contract, and who

(A) is a resident; or

(B) is not a resident, if the following conditions are satisfied:

(i) the insurer that issued the policy or contract is domiciled in this state;

(ii) the state in which the person resides has an association similar to the association created by this chapter; and

(iii) the person is not eligible for coverage by an association in any other state due to the fact that the insurer was not licensed as required by law in that state.

(b) This chapter applies to a person specified in (a) of this section and to a direct, nongroup life, health, annuity, and supplemental policy or contract, to a certificate under a direct group life, health, annuity, or supplemental policy or contract, and to an unallocated annuity contract issued by a member insurer, except as otherwise limited by this chapter.

(c) This chapter does not apply to

(1) that part of a policy or contract that is not guaranteed by the insurer;

(2) that part of the risk borne by the policy or contract holder;

(3) a policy or contract of reinsurance, unless an assumption certificate has been issued;

(4) that part of a policy or contract to the extent that the rate of interest on which it is based, or the interest rate, crediting rate, or similar factor determined by use of an index or other external reference stated in the policy or contract employed in calculating returns or changes in value,

(A) averaged over the period of four years before the date on which the member insurer becomes an impaired or insolvent insurer under this chapter, whichever occurs first, exceeds the rate of interest determined by subtracting two percentage points from the published monthly average for that same four-year period or for a lesser period if the policy or contract was issued less than four years before the member insurer becomes an impaired or insolvent insurer under this chapter, whichever occurs first; and

(B) on and after the date on which the member insurer becomes an impaired or insolvent insurer under this chapter, whichever occurs first, exceeds the rate of interest determined by subtracting three percentage points from the most recent published monthly average;

(5) a plan or program of an employer, association, or similar entity to provide life, health, or an annuity benefit to an employee or member, to the extent that the plan or program is self-funded or uninsured, including a benefit payable by the employer, association, or similar entity under

(A) a multiple employer welfare arrangement as defined in 29 U.S.C. 1002 (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974);

(B) a minimum premium group insurance plan;

(C) a stop-loss group insurance plan; or

(D) an administrative services only contract;

(6) that part of a policy or contract that provides a dividend or experience rating credit or voting rights, or provides that a fee or allowance be paid to a person, including the policy or contract holder, in connection with the service to or administration of the policy or contract;

(7) a policy or contract issued in this state by a member insurer at a time when it was not licensed or did not have a certificate of authority to issue the policy or contract in this state;

(8) a person who is a payee or beneficiary of a contract holder who is a resident of this state if the payee or beneficiary is provided coverage by the association of another state;

(9) a person covered under (e) of this section if any coverage is provided by the association of another state to that person;

(10) an unallocated annuity contract issued to or in connection with a plan protected under the United States Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, regardless of whether the United States Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation has become liable to make any payments with respect to the benefit plan;

(11) that part of an unallocated annuity contract that is not issued to or in connection with a specific employee, union, or association of natural persons benefit plan or a government lottery;

(12) that part of a policy or contract to the extent that assessments required by AS 21.79.070 with respect to the policy or contract are preempted by law;

(13) an obligation that does not arise under the express written terms of the policy or contract issued by the insurer to the contract owner or policy owner, including, without limitation,

(A) a claim based on marketing materials;

(B) a claim based on a side letter or other document that was issued by the insurer without meeting applicable policy form filing or approval requirements;

(C) a misrepresentation of or regarding policy benefits;

(D) an extra contractual claim; or

(E) a claim for penalties or consequential or incidental damages;

(14) a contractual agreement that establishes the member insurer's obligations to provide a book value accounting guaranty for defined contribution benefit plan participants by reference to a portfolio of assets that is owned by the benefit plan or its trustee, which, in each case, is not an affiliate of the member insurer; or

(15) that part of a policy or contract to the extent the part of the policy or contract provides for interest or other changes in value to be determined by the use of an index or other external reference stated in the policy or contract, but that have not been credited to the policy or contract, or as to which the policy or contract owner's rights are subject to forfeiture, as of the date the member insurer becomes an impaired or insolvent insurer under this chapter, whichever is earlier; if a policy's or contract's interest or changes in value are credited less frequently than annually, then, for purposes of determining the values that have been credited and are not subject to forfeiture under this paragraph, the interest or change in value determined by using the procedures defined in the policy or contract shall be credited as if the contractual date of crediting interest or changing values was the date of impairment or insolvency, whichever is earlier, and will not be subject to forfeiture.

(d) This chapter, except for (a) of this section, applies to an unallocated annuity contract specified under (b) of this section, and shall provide coverage to a person who is the owner of

(1) the unallocated annuity contract if the contract is issued to or in connection with a specific benefit plan whose plan sponsor has its principal place of business in this state; and

(2) an unallocated annuity contract issued to or in connection with a government lottery if the owner is a resident.

(e) This chapter, except for (a) of this section, applies to a structured settlement annuity specified under (b) of this section, and shall provide coverage to a person who is a payee under a structured settlement annuity, or the beneficiary of a payee if the payee is deceased, if the payee is

(1) a resident, regardless of where the contract owner resides; or

(2) not a resident, but only if both of the following conditions exists:

(A) the contract owner of the structured settlement annuity is

(i) a resident; or

(ii) not a resident, but the insurer that issued the structured settlement annuity is domiciled in this state, and the state in which the contract owner resides has an association similar to the association created by this chapter; and

(B) the payee, or the payee's beneficiary, and the contract owner are not eligible for coverage by the association of the state in which the payee or contract owner resides.

(f) In this section, "published monthly average" means the monthly average of corporate bond yields as published by Moody's Investor Service, Inc., or its successor, or, if Moody's corporate bond yield average-monthly average corporates is not published, a substantially similar average established by regulation adopted by the director.