Delaware Code Title 18 Sec. 3814 – Advertising
(a) No dental plan organization, or representative thereof, may cause or knowingly permit the use of advertising which is untrue or misleading, solicitation which is untrue or misleading, or any form of evidence of coverage which is deceptive. For purposes of this subsection:
(1) A statement or item of information shall be deemed to be untrue if it does not conform to fact in any respect which is or may be significant to an enrollee of, or person considering enrollment in, a dental plan;
(2) A statement or item of information shall be deemed to be misleading, whether or not it may be literally untrue, if, in the total context in which the statement is made or the item of information is communicated, the statement or item of information may be reasonably understood by a person who does not possess special knowledge regarding dental plan coverage, as indicating any benefit or advantage or the absence of any exclusion, limitation or disadvantage of possible significance to an enrollee of, or person considering enrollment in a dental plan, if the benefit or advantage or absence of exclusion, limitation or disadvantage does not in fact exist; and
(3) Evidence of coverage shall be deemed to be deceptive if the evidence of coverage taken as a whole, and with consideration given to typography, format and language, may cause a person who does not possess special knowledge regarding dental plans and evidences of coverage therefor, to expect benefits, services, charges or other advantages which the evidence of coverage does not provide or which the dental plan organization issuing the evidence of coverage does not regularly make available for enrollees covered under such evidence of coverage.
Terms Used In Delaware Code Title 18 Sec. 3814
- Dental plan: means any contractual arrangement for dental services provided directly or arranged for or administered directly on a prepaid or postpaid individual or group capitation basis. See Delaware Code Title 18 Sec. 3802
- Dental plan organization: means any person who undertakes to provide directly or to arrange for or administer 1 or more dental plans providing dental services. See Delaware Code Title 18 Sec. 3802
- Enrollee: means an individual and that individual's dependents who are enrolled in a dental plan organization. See Delaware Code Title 18 Sec. 3802
- Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
- Evidence of coverage: means any certificate, agreement or contract issued to an enrollee setting out the dental services to which the enrollee is entitled. See Delaware Code Title 18 Sec. 3802
- Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
- State: means the State of Delaware; and when applied to different parts of the United States, it includes the District of Columbia and the several territories and possessions of the United States. See Delaware Code Title 1 Sec. 302
(b) No dental plan organization, unless licensed as an insurer, may use in its name, evidence of coverage or literature any of the words “insurance,” “assurance,” “casualty,” “surety,” “mutual” or any other words descriptive of the insurance, casualty or surety business or deceptively similar to the name or description of any insurer licensed to do business in this State.
(c) This section shall be enforced by the Division of Consumer Protection and, where applicable, the Commissioner. Nothing in this chapter shall limit the powers of the Attorney General and the procedures with respect to consumer fraud.