Section 1395.5 Of Article 9. Miscellaneous From California Health And Safety Code >> Division 2. >> Chapter 2.2. >> Article 9.
1395.5
. (a) Except as provided in subdivisions (b) and (c), no
contract that is issued, amended, renewed, or delivered on or after
January 1, 1999, between a health care service plan, including a
specialized health care service plan, and a provider shall contain
provisions that prohibit, restrict, or limit the health care provider
from advertising.
(b) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit plans
from establishing reasonable guidelines in connection with the
activities regulated pursuant to this chapter, including those to
prevent advertising that is, in whole or in part, untrue, misleading,
deceptive, or otherwise inconsistent with this chapter or the rules
and regulations promulgated thereunder. For advertisements mentioning
a provider's participation in a plan, nothing in this section shall
be construed to prohibit plans from requiring each advertisement to
contain a disclaimer to the effect that the provider's services may
be covered for some, but not all, plan contracts, or that plan
contracts may cover some, but not all, provider services.
(c) Nothing in this section is intended to prohibit provisions or
agreements intended to protect service marks, trademarks, trade
secrets, or other confidential information or property. If a health
care provider participates on a provider panel or network as a result
of a direct contractual arrangement with a health care service plan
that, in turn, has entered into a direct contractual arrangement with
another person or entity, pursuant to which enrollees, subscribers,
insureds, and other beneficiaries of that other person or entity may
receive covered services from the health care provider, then nothing
in this section is intended to prohibit reasonable provisions or
agreements in the direct contractual arrangement between the health
care provider and the health care service plan that protect the name
or trade name of the other person or entity or require that the
health care provider obtain the consent of the health care service
plan prior to the use of the name or trade name of the other person
or entity in any advertising by the health care provider.
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to impair or impede
the authority of the director to regulate advertising, disclosure,
or solicitation pursuant to this chapter.