The Senate Finance Committee adopted an amendment to prior language concerning insurance data disclosures that adds a legal caveat to avoid conflicts with state or federal privacy laws.

Senator Lang said he sent language to Insurance Commissioner Bettencourt for review; the commissioner proposed adding the words "to the extent such disclosure does not violate state or federal law." The committee added that phrase to the amendment on the page under consideration.

A committee member asked whether a numeric threshold referenced in the amendment—"50,000"—was a dollar amount; a senator confirmed it is a dollar amount and committee staff said they would put the currency symbol in the text. The amendment passed with the added legal caveat.

Committee members said the change was intended to provide municipalities with better information while ensuring the state does not inadvertently require disclosures that would conflict with HIPAA or other privacy laws.