-  This bill is not active in this session.
 

A05502 Summary:

BILL NOA05502B
 
SAME ASSAME AS S03510-B
 
SPONSORHeastie (MS)
 
COSPNSRGottfried, Colton, Rosenthal, Miller M, Cymbrowitz, Moya, O'Donnell, Thiele, Galef, Castro, DenDekker, Benedetto, Gunther, Schroeder, Maisel, Spano, Schimel, Lopez V, Weisenberg, Lavine, Weprin, Englebright, Sweeney, Paulin, Dinowitz, Meng, Rodriguez, Hoyt, Gabryszak, Titone, Jaffee, Linares, Simotas, Clark, Boyland, Gibson, Millman
 
MLTSPNSRAbbate, Abinanti, Boyle, Burling, Calhoun, Castelli, Ceretto, Conte, Corwin, Crespo, Crouch, Curran, Duprey, Giglio, Graf, Hayes, Jacobs, Katz, Latimer, Lifton, Lopez P, Losquadro, Malliotakis, Miller J, Montesano, Murray, Palmesano, Peoples-Stokes, Perry, Ra, Raia, Rivera P, Roberts, Saladino, Sayward, Smardz, Tobacco
 
Amd SS3216, 3221 & 4303, Ins L
 
Prohibits health insurers from requiring the insured purchase prescribed drugs from a mail order pharmacy or pay a co-payment fee when such purchases are not made from a mail order pharmacy if a similar fee is not charged for drugs from a mail order pharmacy.
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A05502 Actions:

BILL NOA05502B
 
02/22/2011referred to insurance
04/25/2011amend and recommit to insurance
04/25/2011print number 5502a
05/17/2011amend and recommit to insurance
05/17/2011print number 5502b
05/24/2011reported
05/26/2011advanced to third reading cal.462
06/15/2011passed assembly
06/15/2011delivered to senate
06/15/2011REFERRED TO RULES
06/20/2011SUBSTITUTED FOR S3510B
06/20/20113RD READING CAL.1383
06/20/2011PASSED SENATE
06/20/2011RETURNED TO ASSEMBLY
11/30/2011delivered to governor
12/12/2011signed chap.597
12/12/2011approval memo.14
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A05502 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A5502B
 
SPONSOR: Heastie (MS)
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the insurance law, in relation to the purchase of prescription drugs   PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: Prohibits health insurance policies from mandating their insured to purchase prescribed drugs from a mail order pharmacy.   SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: * §1.- Subsection (i) of Section 3216 of the insurance law is amended by adding a new paragraph (28) to require any policy which provides cover- age for prescription drugs shall allow participants to fill any mail order covered prescription, at his or her option, at any mail order pharmacy or network participating non-mail order retail pharmacy if the network participating non-mail order retail pharmacy offers to accept a price that is comparable to that of the mail order pharmacy. This section goes on to bar the imposition of a co-payment if the insured would not have been charged one at the mail order pharmacy. Also this section states that these changes shall not supersede the terms of a collective bargaining agreement entered into between an employer and a certified employee organization. Additionally, this shall not alter any provisions in sections thirteen and thirteen-a of the workers' compen- sation law regarding the purchase of prescription drugs and the use of mail order pharmacy. * §§2-3.- A new paragraph (18) is also added to subsection (1) of Section 3221 of such law and a new Subsection (hh) is likewise added to section 4303 to impose such a prohibition on all policies of health insurance in the state including those issued by health services or medical expense indemnity corporations issuing group contracts. * §4.- This section adds a severance clause to the legislation.   JUSTIFICATION: This legislation will provide freedom of choice to consumers who have coverage for prescribed drugs as part of their health insurance. When a policy mandates purchase from a specific mail order pharmacy the consumer is forced to purchase an interim supply of the prescribed drug from his or her neighborhood pharmacist who is familiar with his or her medical history. The risk to the consumer in this situ- ation is obvious. Furthermore, the neighborhood pharmacy in these situations is forced to bear the burden of educating the patient as to the use and potential effects of the prescribed drug. The inability of the consumer to purchase the full prescription from the neighborhood pharmacy imposes this burden inequitably, thereby providing the mail order house with an economic advantage that the local provider cannot over come. Finally, many consumers, especially senior citizens, rely on their local pharmacist for the service that they provide with respect to monitoring the regimen of drugs that they take. A mandate of purchase by mail denies them of this important service and confidence.   PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: 2010 - A.1267A 2008 - A.2808/Insurance; S.8775/Rules 2007 - A.2808/Insurance; S.8775/Rules 2006 - A.6934/Insurance 2005 - A.6934/Insurance   FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None   EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall have become law and shall apply to all policies and contracts issued, renewed, modified, altered or amended on or after such effective date.
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A05502 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         5502--B
 
                               2011-2012 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                    February 22, 2011
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced by M. of A. HEASTIE, GOTTFRIED, COLTON, ROSENTHAL, M. MILLER,
          CYMBROWITZ,  MOYA,  O'DONNELL, THIELE, GALEF, CASTRO, DenDEKKER, BENE-
          DETTO, GUNTHER, SCHROEDER, MAISEL, SPANO, SCHIMEL,  V. LOPEZ,  WEISEN-
          BERG,  LAVINE,  WEPRIN,  ENGLEBRIGHT, SWEENEY, PAULIN, DINOWITZ, MENG,
          RODRIGUEZ, HOYT, GABRYSZAK, TITONE -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M.  of  A.

          ABBATE,  ABINANTI,  BOYLE, BURLING, CASTELLI, CERETTO, CORWIN, CRESPO,
          CROUCH, DUPREY, GIGLIO, GRAF, HAYES, JACOBS, KATZ, LATIMER,  P. LOPEZ,
          LOSQUADRO,   MALLIOTAKIS,  J. MILLER,  MONTESANO,  MURRAY,  PALMESANO,
          PEOPLES-STOKES,  RA,  RAIA,  P. RIVERA,  ROBERTS,  SALADINO,  SAYWARD,
          SMARDZ  --  read  once  and  referred to the Committee on Insurance --
          committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as  amended  and
          recommitted  to  said  committee -- again reported from said committee
          with amendments, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to  said
          committee
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  insurance  law,  in relation to the purchase of
          prescription drugs
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 

     1    Section  1.  Subsection  (i)  of  section 3216 of the insurance law is
     2  amended by adding a new paragraph 28 to read as follows:
     3    (28) Any policy which provides coverage for prescription  drugs  shall
     4  permit  each participant to fill any mail order covered prescription, at
     5  his or her option, at any mail order pharmacy or  network  participating
     6  non-mail  order  retail  pharmacy  if the network participating non-mail
     7  order retail pharmacy offers to accept a price  that  is  comparable  to
     8  that  of the mail order pharmacy. Any policy which provides coverage for
     9  prescription drugs shall not impose a co-payment fee or other  condition
    10  on any insured who elects to purchase drugs from a network participating

    11  non-mail  order  retail  pharmacy  which is not also imposed on insureds
    12  electing to purchase  drugs  from  a  designated  mail  order  pharmacy;
    13  provided,  however, that the provisions of this section shall not super-
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09145-06-1

        A. 5502--B                          2
 
     1  sede the terms of a collective bargaining agreement or apply to a policy
     2  that is the result of  a  collective  bargaining  agreement  between  an
     3  employer and a recognized or certified employee organization.
     4    § 2. Subsection (1) of section 3221 of the insurance law is amended by

     5  adding a new paragraph 18 to read as follows:
     6    (18)  Any  insurer  delivering  a group or blanket policy or issuing a
     7  group or blanket policy for delivery in this state which provides cover-
     8  age for prescription drugs shall permit each  participant  to  fill  any
     9  mail order covered prescription, at his or her option, at any mail order
    10  pharmacy  or network participating non-mail order retail pharmacy if the
    11  network participating non-mail order retail pharmacy offers to accept  a
    12  price  that is comparable to that of the mail order pharmacy. Any policy
    13  which provides coverage  for  prescription  drugs  shall  not  impose  a
    14  co-payment  fee or other condition on any insured who elects to purchase

    15  drugs from a network participating non-mail order retail pharmacy  which
    16  is not also imposed on insureds electing to purchase drugs from a desig-
    17  nated  mail  order  pharmacy;  provided, however, that the provisions of
    18  this section shall not supersede the terms of  a  collective  bargaining
    19  agreement  or  apply  to  a  policy  that  is the result of a collective
    20  bargaining agreement between an employer and a recognized  or  certified
    21  employee organization.
    22    §  3.  Section  4303  of  the insurance law is amended by adding a new
    23  subsection (hh) to read as follows:
    24    (hh) Any policy issued by a medical expense indemnity  corporation,  a
    25  hospital  service  corporation  or  a  health services corporation which

    26  provides coverage for prescription drugs shall permit  each  participant
    27  to  fill  any  mail order covered prescription, at his or her option, at
    28  any mail order pharmacy or network participating non-mail  order  retail
    29  pharmacy  if  the  network  participating non-mail order retail pharmacy
    30  offers to accept a price that is comparable to that of  the  mail  order
    31  pharmacy.  Any  policy  which  provides  coverage for prescription drugs
    32  shall not impose a copayment fee or other condition on any  insured  who
    33  elects  to  purchase  drugs  from a network participating non-mail order
    34  retail pharmacy which is  not  also  imposed  on  insureds  electing  to
    35  purchase drugs from a designated mail order pharmacy; provided, however,

    36  that  the  provisions of this section shall not supersede the terms of a
    37  collective bargaining agreement or apply to a policy that is the  result
    38  of  a  collective  bargaining agreement between an employer and a recog-
    39  nized or certified employee organization.
    40    § 4.  If any clause, subparagraph, subsection, section or  other  part
    41  of  this  act,  or the   application thereof be held to be invalid, such
    42  holding shall not affect, impair or invalidate  the  remainder  of  this
    43  act, or the application of such section or part of a section held inval-
    44  id.
    45    §  5.  This  act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
    46  have become a law and shall apply to all policies and contracts  issued,
    47  renewed, modified, altered or amended on or after such effective date.
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