(

a) With respect to individual health benefit plans for policy years on or after January 1, 2014, a health care service plan may use only the following characteristics of an individual, and any dependent thereof, for purposes of establishing the rate of the individual health benefit plan covering the individual and the eligible dependents thereof, along with the health benefit plan selected by the individual:

(1) Age, pursuant to the age bands established by the United States Secretary of Health and Human Services and the age rating curve established by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services pursuant to

Section 2701(a)(3) of the federal Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.

Sec. 300gg(a)(3)). Rates based on age shall be determined using the individual’s age as of the date of the health benefit plan contract issuance or renewal, as applicable, and shall not vary by more than three to one for like individuals of different age who are years of age or older as described in federal regulations adopted pursuant to

Section 2701(a)(3) of the federal Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.

Sec. 300gg(a)(3)). (2) (

A) Geographic region. The geographic regions for purposes of rating shall be the following: (

i) Region shall consist of the Counties of Alpine, Amador, Butte, Calaveras, Colusa, Del Norte, Glenn, Humboldt, Lake, Lassen, Mendocino, Modoc, Nevada, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Sutter, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne, and Yuba. (ii) Region shall consist of the Counties of Marin, Napa, Solano, and Sonoma. (iii) Region shall consist of the Counties of El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, and Yolo. (iv) Region shall consist of the City and County of San Francisco. (

v) Region shall consist of the County of Contra Costa. (vi) Region shall consist of the County of Alameda. (vii) Region shall consist of the County of Santa Clara. (viii) Region shall consist of the County of San Mateo. (ix) Region shall consist of the Counties of Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Cruz. (

x) Region shall consist of the Counties of Mariposa, Merced, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Tulare. (xi) Region shall consist of the Counties of Fresno, Kings, and Madera. (xii) Region shall consist of the Counties of San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura. (xiii) Region shall consist of the Counties of Imperial, Inyo, and Mono. (xiv) Region shall consist of the County of Kern. (xv) Region shall consist of the ZIP Codes in the County of Los Angeles starting with to 912, inclusive, 915, 917, 918, and 935. (xvi) Region shall consist of the ZIP Codes in the County of Los Angeles other than those identified in clause (xv). (xvii) Region shall consist of the Counties of Riverside and San Bernardino. (xviii) Region shall consist of the County of Orange. (xix) Region shall consist of the County of San Diego. (

B) No later than June 1, 2017, the department, in collaboration with the Exchange and the Department of Insurance, shall review the geographic rating regions specified in this paragraph and the impacts of those regions on the health care coverage market in California, and make a report to the appropriate policy committees of the Legislature.

(3) Whether the plan covers an individual or family, as described in PPACA. (

b) The rate for a health benefit plan subject to this

section shall not vary by any factor not described in this section. (

c) With respect to family coverage under an individual health benefit plan, the rating variation permitted under paragraph (1) of subdivision (

a) shall be applied based on the portion of the premium attributable to each family member covered under the plan. The total premium for family coverage shall be determined by summing the premiums for each individual family member. In determining the total premium for family members, premiums for no more than the three oldest family members who are under years of age shall be taken into account. (

d) The rating period for rates subject to this

section shall be from January to December 31, inclusive. (

e) This

section does not apply to an individual health benefit plan that is a grandfathered health plan. (

f) The requirement for submitting a report imposed under subparagraph (

B) of paragraph (2) of subdivision (

a) is inoperative on June 1, 2021, pursuant to

Section 10231.5 of the Government Code.