1. A. Carriers shall maintain documents and records, whether paper, electronic, or in other media, sufficient to substantiate the disbursement of subsidies made pursuant to Regulations .03 and .06 of this chapter for a period of at least 10 years and shall timely make those documents and records available upon request by the Board or its designee to any such entity for purposes of verification, investigation, audit, or other review of subsidy disbursement.

2. B. Audits.

   1. (1) The Individual Exchange may require a carrier offering subsidies through the program to participate in an audit to assess its compliance with the requirements of this chapter. For any audit under this section, the Individual Exchange shall determine whether the audit shall be conducted by:

      1. (a) The Individual Exchange,
      2. (b) A designee of the Individual Exchange; or
      3. (c) An independent, third-party auditor compensated by the carrier.

   2. (2) Timeliness of Audit Reports.

      1. (a) If the audit is conducted by an independent, third-party auditor as specified in §B(1)(c) of this regulation, the carrier must obtain the results no later than 6 months after an audit is requested by the Individual Exchange.
      2. (b) If the audit is conducted by an independent, third-party auditor as specified in §B(1)(c) of this regulation, the carrier shall send the audit report to the Individual Exchange within 15 days of receipt of the audit report by the carrier.

   3. (3) The carrier shall ensure that its relevant contractors, subcontractors, or agents cooperate with any audit under this section. If an audit results in a finding of material weakness or significant deficiency with respect to compliance with any requirement of these regulations, the carrier shall complete all of the following:

      1. (a) Within 30 calendar days of the issuance of the final audit report, provide a written corrective action plan to the Individual Exchange for approval;
      2. (b) Implement the corrective action plan; and
      3. (c) Provide to the Individual Exchange written documentation of the corrective actions once taken.

Authority: Insurance Article §31-106(c)(1)(iv); Annotated Code of Maryland

Effective date:

Regulations .01 — .07 adopted as an emergency provision effective July 11, 2025 (52:16 Md. R. 845); adopted permanently effective October 13, 2025 (52:20 Md. R. 1003)