[§432D-15]  Rehabilitation, liquidation, orconservation of health maintenance organizations.  (a)  Any rehabilitation,liquidation, or conservation of a health maintenance organization shall bedeemed to be the rehabilitation, liquidation, or conservation of an insurancecompany and shall be conducted under the supervision of the commissionerpursuant to the law governing the rehabilitation, liquidation, or conservationof insurance companies.  The commissioner may apply for an order directing thecommissioner to rehabilitate, liquidate, or conserve a health maintenanceorganization upon any one or more grounds set out in article 15 of chapter 431,or when in the commissioner's opinion, the continued operation of the healthmaintenance organization would be hazardous either to the enrollees or to thegeneral public.  Enrollees shall have the same priority in the event ofliquidation or rehabilitation as the law provides to policyholders of aninsurer.

(b)  For purpose of determining the priority ofdistribution of general assets, claims of enrollees and enrollees'beneficiaries shall have the same priority as established by article 15 ofchapter 431, for policyholders and beneficiaries of insureds of insurancecompanies.  If an enrollee is liable to any provider for services providedpursuant to and covered by the health care plan, that liability shall have thestatus of an enrollee claim for distribution of general assets.  Any providerwho is obligated by statute or agreement to hold enrollees harmless fromliability for services provided pursuant to and covered by a health care planshall have a priority of distribution of the general assets immediatelyfollowing that of enrollees and enrollees' beneficiaries as described herein,and immediately preceding the priority of distribution described in article 15of chapter 431. [L 1995, c 179, pt of §1]