For the purposes of this Act, companies that are affiliated companies or that are eligible to file a consolidated tax return shall be treated as one carrier except that any insurance company, hospital service plan, or medical service plan that is an affiliate of an HMO located in North Carolina or any HMO located in North Carolina that is an affiliate of an insurance company, a health service corporation, or a medical service corporation may treat the HMO as a separate carrier and each HMO that operates only one HMO in a service area of North Carolina may be considered a separate carrier.
N.C. Gen. Stat. § 58-50-112