(1) (a) Each individual carrier shall notify the director within thirty (30) days of the effective date of this chapter of the carrier’s intention to operate as a risk-assuming carrier or a reinsuring carrier. An individual carrier seeking to operate as a risk-assuming carrier shall make an application pursuant to the provisions of section 41-5210, Idaho Code.
(b)  The decision shall be binding for a five (5) year period except that the initial decision shall be binding for two (2) years. The director may permit a carrier to modify its decision at any time for good cause shown.
(c)  The director shall establish an application process for individual carriers seeking to change their status under the provisions of this subsection.
(2)  A reinsuring carrier that applies and is approved to operate as a risk-assuming carrier shall not be permitted to continue to reinsure any health benefit plan with the program. Such a carrier shall pay a prorated assessment based upon business issued as a reinsuring carrier for any portion of the year that the business was reinsured.