Sponsored by:
Senator JON M. BRAMNICK
District 21 (Middlesex, Morris, Somerset and Union)
SYNOPSIS
Urges health insurance providers and prescription drug providers to offer option of speaking to or leaving message for human.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
A Senate Resolution urging health insurance providers and prescription drug providers to offer method of speaking to or leaving a message for a human.
Whereas, An increasing number of health insurance providers and prescription drug providers are using automated telephone answering services to receive calls, process transactions, and direct callers to appropriate extensions; and
Whereas, These systems are often difficult to accurately navigate, especially for senior citizens and individuals with impaired hearing; and
Whereas, It is not uncommon for such automated telephone answering services to be designed without a simple and clear method of contacting a human telephone operator or representative; and
Whereas, Consumers often spend excessive lengths of time trying to access a person to speak directly with so that they can resolve simple concerns; and
Whereas, In light of all these factors, it is important to encourage health insurance providers and prescription drug providers that use automated telephone answering services to provide a uniform method for contacting a human operator or representative; now, therefore,
Be It Resolved by the Senate of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Senate urges health insurance providers and prescription drug providers that use automated telephone answering services to offer individuals who contact them by telephone during normal business hours the option of pressing zero on their telephone in order to speak to or leave a recorded message for a human telephone operator or representative.
2. Copies of this resolution, as filed with the Secretary of State, shall be transmitted by the Clerk of the General Assembly or the Secretary of the Senate to the Governor, the Commissioner of Banking and Insurance, the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs, and the members of the New Jersey State Board of Pharmacy.
STATEMENT
This resolution urges health insurance providers and prescription drug providers that use automated telephone answering services to offer individuals who contact them by telephone during normal business hours the option of pressing zero on their telephone in order to speak to or leave a recorded message for a human telephone operator or representative.