Easley's plan calls for an independent review board to evaluate patient claims against health care providers and requires providers to offer coverage for participating in clinical trials.
According to a press release from Easley's office, the proposed Patients' Bill of Rights is meant to improve health care for the state's working families.
"The doctor-patient relationship must remain paramount," the press release states. "Patients are entitled to, and this legislation will demand, that health insurance companies are accountable to the consumers they serve."
Rep. Joe Hackney, D-Orange, one of the plan's primary sponsors, said the measure will help correct problems in the system. "(The plan) provides a remedy for persons who are denied treatment by their HMO," Hackney said.
He said the independent review board that the plan calls for will ensure patient complaints are addressed quickly and that patients' needs are met. "(The plan) protects those who have chosen HMOs from arbitrary panels who are not health care professionals," Hackney said.
He said the plan closely resembles a bill the N.C. House passed in 1999, which gave people the right to sue health insurance companies when a decision to withhold coverage resulted in harm to the patient.
The 1999 bill was not considered by the Senate.
Hackney said he believes close similarities between Easley's plan and the previous House bill will ease the measure's passage through the House.
Sen. Robert Rucho, R-Mecklenburg, said he thinks Easley's plan will face little opposition in the Senate because many senators favor health care reform.
