SB 1527
Plain-language analysis
Generated analysis, not an official summary or legal advice. Confirm with linked Oregon documents.
Prohibits health insurers offering group or individual plans in Oregon, the Public Employees' Benefit Board (PEBB), and the Oregon Educators Benefit Board (OEBB) from charging deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, or other out-of-pocket costs for medically necessary cervical cancer screenings and follow-up diagnostic examinations. Applies to policies issued, renewed, or extended on or after the effective date.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
Oregon law currently requires diagnostic follow-up examinations for colon cancer and breast cancer to be covered without cost-sharing but does not mandate this for cervical cancer; the measure addresses this gap by requiring coverage of diagnostic follow-up examinations for cervical cancer without cost-sharing.
Basis: Official analysis · Sources: Staff Measure Summary A; Staff Measure Summary A
Inferred from cited text; not a stated purpose.
The insertion of a comprehensive definition section in Section 3 suggests an intent to harmonize the new coverage mandate with existing Insurance Code terminology or to clarify regulatory scope for the Department of Consumer and Business Services, reducing ambiguity regarding terms like 'carrier' and 'health benefit plan'.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Enrolled; Senate Amendments to Introduced
Must cover specified screenings and follow-ups with zero cost-sharing. Cannot impose deductibles, coinsurance, copayments, or other out-of-pocket costs.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
Public employees and educators must receive coverage for these services without cost-sharing under their state-administered plans.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
Must comply with the cost-sharing prohibition for plan periods beginning on or after the effective date.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
Individuals with abnormal cervical cancer screening results gain financial access to colposcopies, biopsies, and additional cytology or HPV tests.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
Insurers must adjust plan designs and billing systems to eliminate cost-sharing for these services.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
Patients may experience increased utilization of follow-up diagnostic tests due to the removal of financial barriers.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Enrolled
The Department of Consumer and Business Services will enforce compliance, supported by expanded definitions in Section 3.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
State government expenditures have minimal fiscal impact; no revenue impact is expected.
Basis: Official analysis · Sources: Fiscal Impact Statement A; Revenue Impact Statement A
Patient with abnormal screening
A low-income individual with an abnormal Pap test undergoes a colposcopy, biopsy, and multiple follow-up HPV tests without incurring any out-of-pocket costs, enabling timely treatment of precancerous lesions and preventing progression to invasive cancer.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
Patient with follow-up care
An insurer denies coverage for a medically necessary colposcopy by misclassifying the procedure as 'treatment of diagnosed cervical cancer' rather than a 'follow-up examination,' exploiting the exclusion to impose cost-sharing or deny benefits entirely.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
The exclusion for treatment of diagnosed cancer creates a boundary that could be exploited to deny follow-up care if the distinction between diagnostic evaluation and treatment is ambiguously applied.
Sources · Enrolled
The measure eliminates financial barriers to essential cervical cancer follow-up care, improving access and early detection, while imposing new coverage mandates on insurers that may increase premium costs or require plan design adjustments.
Improved access to diagnostic follow-up for abnormal screenings without cost-sharing.
Basis: Bill text · Source: Enrolled
Alignment with existing Oregon mandates for colon and breast cancer follow-up coverage.
Basis: Official analysis · Sources: Staff Measure Summary A; Staff Measure Summary A
The enrolled bill inserts a new Section 3 that amends ORS 743B.005 to add comprehensive definitions for terms used in the Insurance Code (e.g., 'carrier,' 'health benefit plan,' 'small employer'). The previous version omitted this definition section. The enrolled bill's subsequent sections renumber accordingly but maintain the core mandate: prohibiting cost-sharing for cervical cancer screenings and follow-ups across private plans, PEBB, and OEBB.
Added Section 3 amending ORS 743B.005 to define terms including 'carrier,' 'health benefit plan,' 'small employer,' and others relevant to the Insurance Code.
Expands regulatory definitions, potentially clarifying scope for enforcement and compliance.
Sources · Enrolled; Senate Amendments to Introduced
Tradeoff: The addition of definitions does not alter the core tradeoff but may reduce ambiguity in regulatory application.
high confidence. The enrolled bill text is complete and explicit regarding coverage mandates, definitions, and effective dates. Supporting analysis confirms fiscal impact and rationale.
Possible effects if adopted; not current bill text.
If adopted, the amendment would delay the operative date of SB 1527’s mandate requiring health insurers to cover cervical cancer screenings and follow-up examinations without cost-sharing until January 1, 2027, while adjusting implementation timing for related statutory provisions and authorizing pre-operative administrative preparation by the Bureau of Labor and Industries.
Basis: Stakeholder claim · Sources: Amendment -2 — proposed amendment; Introduced
Official sources do not state why this measure was proposed.
Sponsor testimony, staff summaries, committee materials, or statutory findings may explain it.
Inferred from cited text; not a stated purpose.
The amendment likely aligns the mandate’s implementation with standard plan renewal cycles and provides administrative lead time for insurers and state agencies to adjust billing systems and compliance protocols.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -2 — proposed amendment
Must update policy forms, claims adjudication rules, and member communications to eliminate cost-sharing for specified screenings and follow-ups by January 1, 2027.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Amendment -2 — proposed amendment; Staff Measure Summary A
Must align state employee and educator health benefits with the new coverage mandate on the same date.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Staff Measure Summary A
Will face no deductibles or copays for qualifying screenings and diagnostic follow-ups starting January 1, 2027, potentially increasing access to early detection.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Staff Measure Summary A; Staff Measure Summary A
Is authorized to take preparatory administrative actions before June 1, 2025 regarding related wage and sick leave statutes referenced in the amendment.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -2 — proposed amendment
Insurers must revise billing systems and compliance protocols by late 2026, incurring minimal but necessary administrative costs.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Fiscal Impact Statement A; Amendment -2 — proposed amendment
Providers will likely see increased utilization of colposcopies, biopsies, and HPV tests following abnormal screenings due to removed financial barriers.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Staff Measure Summary A
Enforcement relies on the Department of Consumer and Business Services monitoring insurer compliance with the Insurance Code.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Fiscal Impact Statement A
Low-income enrollee with a high-deductible plan
Undergoes an abnormal Pap test; without cost-sharing, receives immediate colposcopy and biopsy at no out-of-pocket expense, enabling early-stage precancer treatment that would have been financially delayed or foregone.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Staff Measure Summary A; Staff Measure Summary A
Enrollee with ambiguous clinical documentation
An insurer misclassifies a follow-up examination as treatment of diagnosed cancer rather than a diagnostic follow-up, denying coverage and leaving the patient liable for thousands in procedural costs until regulatory intervention occurs.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Introduced
The text legally permits insurers to exclude services that occur primarily for the treatment of diagnosed cervical cancer. Weak enforcement or ambiguous clinical documentation could allow carriers to misclassify necessary diagnostic follow-ups as excluded treatment, shifting costs back to patients despite the statutory prohibition on cost-sharing.
Sources · Introduced
Delaying implementation to January 1, 2027 provides insurers and state agencies time to adjust administrative systems but postpones financial protection for patients who would otherwise face out-of-pocket barriers to early cervical cancer detection. Upsides include reduced compliance disruption and clearer plan renewal alignment; downsides include extended periods of potential cost-sharing exposure for eligible enrollees.
Reduced administrative disruption by aligning mandate adoption with standard plan renewal cycles.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -2 — proposed amendment
Clearer implementation timeline for state agencies and insurers to update billing systems and compliance protocols.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Amendment -2 — proposed amendment; Fiscal Impact Statement A
Extended periods of potential cost-sharing exposure for eligible enrollees who would otherwise face financial barriers to early cervical cancer detection.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Staff Measure Summary A; Staff Measure Summary A
Delayed alignment of PEBB and OEBB benefits with current clinical screening guidelines.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Staff Measure Summary A
high confidence. The amendment's text explicitly sets operative dates and administrative authorities. Fiscal and revenue impacts are officially documented as minimal or nonexistent. Clinical definitions and coverage mandates are clearly stated in supporting staff summaries.
The amendment expands Oregon’s cost-sharing prohibition for cervical cancer screening follow-ups to explicitly cover diagnostic testing after abnormal results, removes the high-deductible plan exemption, adds specific covered procedures, exempts the mandate from automatic sunset, and extends coverage requirements to PEBB and OEBB state employee plans. Insurers and self-insured employers must absorb these costs, while patients gain guaranteed zero out-of-pocket access to colposcopies, biopsies, cytology, and HPV tests following abnormal screenings.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment; Staff Measure Summary A; Staff Measure Summary A
Official sources do not state why this measure was proposed.
Sponsor testimony, staff summaries, committee materials, or statutory findings may explain it.
Inferred from cited text; not a stated purpose.
The amendment likely aims to close coverage gaps for diagnostic follow-ups after abnormal cervical screenings by removing the high-deductible plan exemption and explicitly defining covered procedures, thereby aligning Oregon’s cervical cancer follow-up coverage with existing mandates for breast and colon cancer diagnostic follow-ups.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment; Staff Measure Summary A
Must cover specified follow-up examinations without deductibles, coinsurance, or copayments; cannot apply the former high-deductible plan exemption; must update policy language and claims adjudication systems.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment; Introduced
Gain explicit statutory coverage for diagnostic follow-ups after abnormal cervical screenings under state employee health plans, removing prior ambiguity or potential cost-sharing.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
Must adjust plan design or claims processing to cover specified follow-up exams without cost-sharing for periods beginning on or after the effective date, though federal preemption may limit direct state enforcement.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
Will face reduced patient balance billing for these services; must ensure claims are coded as diagnostic follow-ups rather than routine screenings to trigger coverage.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment; Staff Measure Summary A
Insurers must update policy documents, provider networks, and claims systems to reflect zero cost-sharing for the defined follow-up exams. Providers will bill insurers directly without patient balance billing for these services.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
State fiscal impact is minimal per Legislative Fiscal Office and Legislative Revenue Office analysis; costs shift to private insurers and self-insured employers, likely absorbed into premium pricing or claims management.
Basis: Inferred · Sources: Fiscal Impact Statement A; IS_Impact SB 1527 1
Removes financial barriers for patients with abnormal screening results, potentially reducing delays in diagnostic evaluation for precancerous lesions or malignancy.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Staff Measure Summary A
DCBS will regulate compliance; exemption from sunset prevents the mandate from lapsing automatically, ensuring long-term statutory stability.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
Low-income state employee with abnormal cervical screening
Immediately undergoes colposcopy and biopsy with zero out-of-pocket cost, enabling early detection and treatment of cervical dysplasia without financial hardship or delayed care.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
Patient with ambiguous clinical coding
Insurer classifies a medically necessary follow-up as experimental or screening rather than diagnostic to avoid coverage, leaving patients liable for thousands in procedure costs despite the statutory mandate, due to ambiguous clinical coding or claims adjudication disputes.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
The text legally permits insurers to deny coverage if a service is not deemed necessary diagnostic testing required after an abnormal cervical cancer screening result. Weak enforcement or aggressive utilization management could lead to misclassification of routine follow-ups as non-covered screenings, shifting costs to patients or providers despite the statutory prohibition on cost-sharing.
Sources · Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
The measure eliminates financial barriers to essential diagnostic follow-ups for abnormal cervical screenings but shifts uncompensated care costs to insurers and self-insured employers while relying on clinical definitions that may invite coverage disputes.
Improved early detection of precancerous lesions and malignancy through reduced patient financial toxicity.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Staff Measure Summary A
Statutory parity with existing Oregon mandates covering diagnostic follow-ups for breast and colon cancer without cost-sharing.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Staff Measure Summary A
Long-term coverage stability via exemption from automatic sunset provisions.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
Potential premium increases or claims management burdens for private insurers and self-insured employers.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Fiscal Impact Statement A
Administrative complexity in distinguishing diagnostic follow-ups from routine screenings or treatment of diagnosed cancer, which remains excluded.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Introduced
Risk of coverage denials based on diagnostic coding ambiguities or utilization management disputes.
Basis: Inferred · Source: Amendment -1 — proposed amendment
high confidence. Analysis is grounded in the proposed amendment text, official staff summaries, and fiscal/revenue impact statements. No enacted language or external litigation data is available.
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Records available in the current snapshot.
Earliest loaded signal
Introduced bill text posted
Posted Jan 28, 2026, 3:25 PM PST
Follow the official text for SB 1527 and every amendment branch. Connections come from each amendment's stated base. Horizontal position shows when each document was first posted, when available.
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Selected document summary
Targeted changes
What the document says to change
On page 1 of the printed bill, line 2, after “ORS” insert “243.
Official records (1)
Oregon records no individual sponsors.
Presession filing record
Printed pursuant to Senate Interim Rule 213.28 by order of the President of the Senate in conformance with presession filing rules, indicating neither advocacy nor opposition on the part of the President.
LC 100 became SB 1527
Mapping document posted: January 6, 2026 at 2:16 PM PST
Work Session — <b>Introduction of Committee Legislative Concepts</b> <i>When available, LC drafts will be posted on the committee’s OLIS page.</i> LC 100 LC 101 LC 102
Senate Interim Committee on Health Care introduction work session
Committee meeting: January 13, 2026 at 2:30 PM PST
HR C
Committee introduction motion
Committee meeting: January 13, 2026 at 2:30 PM PST
A motion was made to adopt the listed legislative concepts as committee bills.
Official vote: 5-0-0
Committee introduction allows consideration; it does not imply every member supported the introduced or final text.
Senate carrier
Senator Deb Patterson
Third Reading Of Senate Measures · Version A
Senate carrier
Senator Cedric Hayden
Third Reading Of Senate Measures · Version A
House carrier
Representative Emerson Levy
Third Reading Of Senate Bills · Version A
A carrier presents the measure or report but is not necessarily its sponsor or author.
Records already listed in Activity are not repeated here.
30 events
Full timeline
30 entries shown.
Effective date, January 1, 2027.
Chapter 24, 2026 Laws.
Governor signed.
Speaker signed.
President signed.
Third reading. Carried by Levy E. Passed.
Ayes, 54; Excused, 4--Hartman, Lively, Scharf, Valderrama; Excused for Business of the House, 2--Boshart Davis, Harbick.
Second reading.
Recommendation: Do pass.
Public Hearing and Work Session held.
Public Hearing and Work Session
Heard and Reported Out · Agenda item 3 · Room HR 60 · Prohibits cost-sharing on certain health insurance, Oregon Educators Benefit Board and Public Employees' Benefit Board coverage of cervical cancer screenings and follow-up examinations.
Referred to Health Care.
First reading. Referred to Speaker's desk.
Third reading. Carried by Hayden, Patterson. Passed.
Ayes, 29; Excused, 1--Drazan.
Second reading.
Senate Amendments to Introduced bill text posted
Recommendation: Do pass with amendments. (Printed A-Eng.)
Public Hearing and Work Session held.
Public Hearing and Work Session
Heard and Reported Out with Amendments · Agenda item 2 · Room HR D · Prohibits cost-sharing on certain health insurance coverage of cervical cancer screenings and follow-up examinations.
Amendment -2 proposed
IS_Impact SB 1527 1
Revenue Impact Statement
Amendment -1 adopted
Referred to Health Care.
Introduction and first reading. Referred to President's desk.
“Enrolled bill text posted”
Confirm with the official record.
Supplemental, source-linked analysis from project researchers and community contributors. It is separate from Oregon's official record.