185.981 Cooperative health care.
(1) Cooperative associations may be organized under this chapter without capital stock, primarily to establish and operate in the state or in any county or counties in the state nonprofit plans or programs for health care, including hospital care, for their members and their members' dependents through contracts with physicians, medical societies, chiropractors, optometrists, dentists, dental societies, hospitals, podiatrists, and others.
(2) A cooperative association organized under this section shall operate only on a cooperative nonprofit basis and for the primary purpose of establishing, maintaining, and operating a voluntary nonprofit health, dental, or vision care plan or plans, or for constructing, operating, and maintaining nonprofit hospitals or other facilities whereby health care, including hospital, dental, or vision care, is provided to its members and to other persons or groups of persons who become subscribers to the plans, subject to s. 185.982 (2), under contracts that provide access to medical, surgical, chiropractic, vision, dental, or hospital care, other health care services, appliances, and supplies, by physicians and surgeons licensed and registered under ch. 448, podiatrists licensed under ch. 448, optometrists licensed under ch. 449, chiropractors licensed under ch. 446, dentists licensed under ch. 447, and other health care providers in their offices, in hospitals, in other facilities, and in the home. Nothing in this subsection precludes a cooperative association organized under this section from owning an interest in other entities for enhancing or improving member services or for investment or other purposes, as long as the association's primary purpose remains as provided in this subsection.
(3) No cooperative association organized primarily for the purposes provided in ss. 185.981 to 185.983 shall be prevented from contracting with any hospital in this state for the rendition of such hospital care as is included within the cooperative association's plans because the hospital participates in a plan of any other cooperative association, or in a plan organized and operated under ss. 148.03 and 613.80. No hospital may discriminate against any physician and surgeon, chiropractor, dentist, or podiatrist with respect to the use of the hospital's facilities by reason of his or her participation in a health care plan of a cooperative.
(4)
(a) Except as provided in par. (b), no contract by or on behalf of any such cooperative association shall provide for the payment of any cash, indemnity, or other material benefit by that association to the subscriber or the subscriber's estate on account of death, illness, or injury, but any such association may stipulate in its plans that it will pay any nonparticipating physician and surgeon, optometrist, chiropractor, dentist, podiatrist, hospital, or other provider for hospital or other health care rendered to any covered person who is in need of a plan's benefits. The plans may prescribe monetary limitations with respect to the benefits.
(b) A cooperative association may make a payment in cash, indemnity, or other material benefit for a purpose that is incidental to its plans, including for the purpose of administering coordination of benefits.
(5) Every cooperative association organized under this section is a charitable and benevolent corporation.
(7) Notwithstanding sub. (4) and ss. 185.982 (1) and 185.983 (1), a health care plan that is operated by a cooperative association and that qualifies as a health maintenance organization, as defined in s. 609.01 (2), is subject to s. 609.655.
(8) Coverage by a health care plan operated by a cooperative association that qualifies as a health maintenance organization, as defined in s. 609.01 (2), of mammograms under s. 632.895 (8) may be subject to any requirements that the health care plan imposes under s. 609.05 (2) and (3) on the coverage of other health care services obtained by members and their dependents.
(9) Coverage by a health care plan operated by a cooperative association that qualifies as a health maintenance organization, as defined in s. 609.01 (2), of health care services obtained by adopted children and children placed for adoption may be subject to any requirements that the health care plan imposes under s. 609.05 (2) and (3) on the coverage of health care services obtained by other members and their dependents.
History: 1971 c. 40 s. 93; 1971 c. 307 s. 118; 1975 c. 98; 1975 c. 223 s. 28; 1975 c. 224 s. 146; 1975 c. 421; 1981 c. 39 s. 22; 1981 c. 205; 1981 c. 391 s. 210; 1985 a. 29; 1985 a. 30 s. 42; 1987 a. 27 ss. 1917e, 3202 (47) (a); 1987 a. 312 s. 17; 1989 a. 121, 129, 200, 201, 336; 1991 a. 39, 123, 269; 1993 a. 27, 450, 481; 1995 a. 27, 118, 289; 1997 a. 27, 155, 237; 1999 a. 95, 115; 2003 a. 321; 2005 a. 194; 2007 a. 36; 2009 a. 14, 28, 113, 146, 165.
Structure Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
185.031 - Refunds after forfeiture.
185.033 - Restriction on changes to articles.
185.034 - Definitions applicable to indemnification and insurance provisions.
185.035 - Mandatory indemnification.
185.036 - Determination of right to indemnification.
185.037 - Allowance of expenses as incurred.
185.038 - Additional rights to indemnification and allowance of expenses.
185.039 - Court-ordered indemnification.
185.04 - Indemnification and allowance of expenses of employees and agents.
185.042 - Indemnification and insurance against securities law claims.
185.045 - Reserved or registered name.
185.06 - Organization meetings.
185.08 - Principal office; registered agent; service of process.
185.09 - Promotion expense; limitation.
185.15 - Notice to members, stockholders or other persons; waiver.
185.21 - Stock; authorization, issuance, control, use, rights.
185.22 - Subscriptions for stock; liability therefor.
185.23 - Missing securities or records.
185.24 - Liability of cooperative for wrongful transfers of its securities.
185.25 - Applicability of ch. 408 to cooperative securities.
185.31 - Directors; number, election, removal and vacancies.
185.32 - Directors; meetings, quorum and waiver of notice.
185.34 - Action without meeting by directors or members.
185.36 - Compensation and benefits to directors, officers and employees.
185.363 - Reliance by directors or officers.
185.365 - Consideration of interests in addition to members' and stockholders' interests.
185.367 - Limited liability of directors and officers.
185.37 - Liability of directors and members.
185.38 - Disposition of assets; right to secure debts.
185.41 - Cooperative contracts.
185.42 - Recording of cooperative contracts; effect thereof.
185.43 - Relief against breach or threatened breach.
185.44 - Application of ss. 185.41 to 185.43; venue of action.
185.45 - Apportionment and distribution of proceeds.
185.47 - Financial books and records; penalty for refusal to produce.
185.48 - Annual reports; filing thereof.
185.50 - Income or franchise tax returns.
185.51 - Amendments to articles.
185.52 - Stockholder voting on amendments to articles.
185.53 - Filing and recording amendments; effect thereof.
185.55 - Amendments by bankruptcy court.
185.61 - Merger and consolidation.
185.62 - Articles of merger or consolidation; effect thereof.
185.63 - Division of a cooperative.
185.64 - Conversion of corporation.
185.71 - Voluntary dissolution.
185.72 - Involuntary dissolution.
185.73 - Liquidation under court supervision.
185.74 - Property not distributed prior to dissolution.
185.76 - Survival of remedy after dissolution.
185.81 - Admission of foreign cooperatives.
185.815 - Recording change of principal office or registered agent.
185.82 - Procedure on filing and recording of documents.
185.825 - Penalty for false document.
185.84 - Fees or penalty due state.
185.85 - Forms to be furnished by department of financial institutions.
185.91 - Voting requirements of articles.
185.92 - Effect of unauthorized acts.
185.93 - Member or stockholder derivative actions.
185.94 - Use of term “cooperative"; penalty for improper use.
185.95 - Discrimination against association.
185.96 - Application of chapter.
185.981 - Cooperative health care.
185.982 - Manner of practicing medicine, chiropractic and dentistry; payment; promotional expense.
185.983 - Requirements of plan.
185.985 - Inconsistent provisions of the statutes.
185.99 - Health benefit purchasing cooperatives.
185.995 - Extensions of credit by electric cooperatives for certain projects.