Session Review: Banking, Commerce and Insurance
Measures meant to protect children online, create an HMO assessment program, improve pharmacy benefit manager regulations and provide immunity for certain cyber security breaches were among proposals considered by lawmakers this session.
Senators passed a bill meant to protect children’s private information online and provide parental tools to monitor their safety.
LB504, introduced by Lincoln Sen. Carolyn Bosn at the request of Gov. Jim Pillen, creates the Age-Appropriate Online Design Code Act. Under the act, a covered online service is required to protect user data of known minors and provide options to limit certain design features.
A covered online service is defined as one that has minors as more than 2% of its total users, which operates in Nebraska and meets certain revenue or data volume thresholds. The bill does not apply to government entities.
Among other provisions, the bill requires a covered online service to provide covered minors with “easy-to-use” tools that prevent other individuals from viewing a minor’s personal data and limit covered design features — including infinite scroll, rewards or incentives, push alerts and appearance-altering filters.
Covered online services are required to establish default settings at a level that provides the highest protection available for the safety of minors and are allowed to collect and use only the minimum amount of a minor’s personal data necessary to provide their online service.
Use of notifications and push alerts to a covered minor are prohibited between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6 a.m. and 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. on weekdays during the school year.
Parents will be provided with the ability to view, manage and control a child’s privacy and account settings and restrict their ability to make in-app purchases and other financial transactions.
Violations of the act will constitute a deceptive trade practice under the Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Beginning July 1, 2026, a covered service could receive a civil penalty of not more than $50,000 per violation.
Senators passed LB504 on a vote of 42-7.
Insurance and pharmacies
Lawmakers approved a measure intended to increase Medicaid provider reimbursement rates without the use of general fund dollars.
Modeled on a proposal approved by the Legislature last year to levy an assessment on all Nebraska hospitals, LB527, sponsored by North Platte Sen. Mike Jacobson, will use a similar mechanism to levy an assessment on the state’s health maintenance organizations.
Under the bill, the state Department of Health and Human Services is required to submit a state plan amendment to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services by Aug. 1.
If approved, the state plan amendment will authorize collection of a tax of up to 6% on all non-Medicare premiums written in Nebraska under an HMO certificate of authority, to be collected by the state Department of Insurance beginning Jan. 1, 2026.
Revenue generated by the tax will be remitted to a newly created Medicaid Access and Quality Fund. DHHS will use the fund to leverage federal matching dollars to enhance Medicaid reimbursement rates paid to nonhospital providers of physical health services, with an emphasis on evaluation and management, labor and delivery and rural health services.
The fund also will be used to pay a monthly per-member fee of at least $75 to qualified primary care providers who meet criteria to serve as a primary care medical home for target populations. Any remaining funds will be used within the state’s Medicaid and CHIP programs.
LB527 passed on a vote of 47-0 and took effect immediately.
A bill meant to protect certain hospitals and other health care facilities in Nebraska that purchase drugs at discount prices through a federal program passed this session.
LB168, as introduced by Sen. Brian Hardin of Gering, prohibits drug manufacturers from directly or indirectly denying, restricting or prohibiting acquisition of a 340B Community Benefits Program drug by any location that is authorized to receive it.
Unless required by federal law, the bill also prohibits any manufacturer, agent or affiliate from requiring any data submission as a condition for allowing the acquisition of a 340B drug.
The Nebraska attorney general or any county attorney may institute action on behalf of the state to prevent violations of the bill’s provisions.
The measure passed on a vote of 42-5 and took effect immediately.
LB198, sponsored by Elkhorn Sen. Tony Sorrentino and passed 49-0, makes a number of changes to the Pharmacy Benefit Manager Licensure and Regulation Act.
Under the bill, PBMs are prohibited from imposing stricter terms on unaffiliated specialty pharmacies than on their own affiliated entities. The measure also makes a number of changes to the regulation of clinician-administered drugs.
Among those changes is a requirement that specialty pharmacies that ship clinician-administered drugs adhere to federal shipping laws, provide 24/7 pharmacist and nurse access, allow refill requests post-utilization review and comply with federal tracking and tracing requirements.
LB198 also prohibits health plans, carriers and PBMs from transferring prescriptions without consent, preventing individuals from choosing network pharmacies and mandating exclusive use of mail-order or affiliated pharmacies for payment and reimbursement, among other provisions.
Finally, beginning Jan. 1, 2026, new PBM health plan contracts cannot include spread pricing — a practice in which a PBM charges a health plan more for a medication than it pays to the pharmacy — unless it’s an extension of a preexisting spread pricing contract. A full prohibition on spread pricing takes effect Jan. 1, 2029.
Lawmakers also approved a bill intended to ensure that children with life-threatening allergies are safe in school and licensed child care environments.
LB457, introduced by Sen. Eliot Bostar of Lincoln, requires the state Department of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the state Department of Education, to develop statewide guidelines for prevention, individualized health plans, emergency response and communication regarding anaphylaxis.
Under the bill, school districts and licensed child care facilities that include children with known allergies must adopt and publish a policy on anaphylaxis by July 1, 2026.
LB457 also requires any individual or group sickness and accident insurance policy that provides reimbursement for prescription medically necessary epinephrine injectors to limit to no more than $60 the total amount that a covered individual is required to pay for a two-pack of injectors, regardless of the amount or type of epinephrine injector needed.
Lawmakers passed the measure on a vote of 47-1.
Omnibus bill
LB474, introduced by the Banking, Commerce and Insurance Committee at the request of the Nebraska Department of Banking and Finance, makes a number of changes related to interest, loans and debt under the department’s jurisdiction, effective Oct. 1.
Among other provisions, the bill eliminates the Nebraska Installment Loan Act after merging certain provisions of it with the Nebraska Installment Sales Act and creating a new Nebraska Installment Loan and Sales Act.
Loans made by financial institutions that are serviced by or purchased by a licensee will not be subject to the interest rate limitations of the new Nebraska Installment Loan and Sales Act.
The bill includes provisions of three other measures heard by the committee this session.
Under the provisions of LB232, sponsored by Sen. Bob Hallstrom of Syracuse, life insurance policies issued or delivered on or after Jan. 1, 2026, are required to send notice electronically or by mail to the last known address of the policy owner and any assignee on record at least 15 days prior to policy termination or lapse due to nonpayment of any premium.
An assignee will have the same legal standing as the policy owner with respect to the provision.
LB278, introduced by Elkhorn Sen. R. Brad von Gillern, amends state law that places restrictions on health insurance policies and contracts between preferred providers and insurers by preventing such policies and contracts from excluding a provider solely because the provider holds a visiting faculty permit.
Finally, the amended provisions of LB473, sponsored by the committee, update and modernize the Nebraska Money Transmitters Act.
LB474 passed on a 49-0 vote.
Other measures
Lawmakers approved a bill that limits a private entity from being liable in a class action resulting from a cybersecurity event in certain circumstances.
Under LB241, introduced by Hallstrom, private entities that experience a data breach are not liable in a class action unless the cybersecurity event was caused by the entity’s “willful, wanton or gross negligence.”
The bill defines a cybersecurity event as one that leads to unauthorized access to, disruption or misuse of nonpublic information, such as Social Security or driver’s license numbers or financial account information, security codes or passwords.
Qualifying private entities under the bill include corporations, religious or charitable organizations, associations, businesses and nonprofits.
LB241 passed on a vote of 36-10.
A bill that makes operators of controllable electronic records, such as cryptocurrency, subject to regulation under the Nebraska Money Transmitters Act also passed this session.
LB609, sponsored by Bostar, requires controllable electronic records kiosks to be licensed and submit quarterly reports to the Nebraska Department of Banking and Finance.
Among other provisions, the bill also requires operators to:
• provide risk, fee and exchange rate disclosures;
• create and implement anti-fraud measures;
• offer refunds for fraudulent transactions;
• provide consumer warnings; and
• abide by certain transaction limits.
LB609 also adds controllable electronic records as a type of property that may be seized in criminal investigations. Lawmakers passed the measure on a 48-0 vote.
