Creates the Paid Family Leave Insurance Act

House Bill 591 creates a new line of insurance in Louisiana by enacting the Paid Family Leave Insurance Act as sections 1192.1 through 1192.4 of Title 22 of the Louisiana Revised Statutes. The legislation authorizes any insurer licensed to issue life insurance or disability income insurance in Louisiana to offer paid family leave insurance policies or riders that provide wage replacement benefits when employees take leave for enumerated family reasons. The statute establishes the framework, definitions, benefit requirements, eligibility limitations, and operational rules for these policies. Specifically, it requires that insurance policies include provisions addressing benefit amounts, payment methods, premiums, covered leave reasons, benefit calculation methods, policy duration, and permissible limitations or exclusions.

The legislation directly affects insurers licensed in Louisiana who may now create and market new paid family leave insurance products to employers, and it affects employees whose employers offer these policies by providing them access to wage replacement income during qualifying family leave absences. Qualifying reasons for family leave include caring for a family member with a serious health condition, bonding with a newborn or newly adopted or fostered child, addressing military-related qualifying exigencies, and caring for an injured service member. The statute ensures minimum benefits of at least two weeks per fifty-two consecutive calendar weeks for covered reasons, though the policy may provide greater benefits. Employers and employees will be able to structure waiting periods, benefit amounts as a percentage of wages, offset provisions for other income sources, and eligibility limitations within the parameters the statute establishes.

The legislation operates within Louisiana's existing insurance regulatory framework codified in Title 22 of the Revised Statutes, specifically Part 3 Chapter 4 governing disability income insurance and related coverages. The statute cross-references the federal Family and Medical Leave Act for definitions of qualifying leave reasons, serious health condition standards, and military service-related exigencies, incorporating those federal standards into Louisiana law. Premiums must comply with applicable federal Social Security Act guidelines. The statute also incorporates by reference existing Louisiana provisions defining family members under R.S. 40:2024.2 and healthcare provider definitions from R.S. 22:1831, ensuring consistency with established state law definitions and regulatory structures.