CA AB1843

Prohibits health care service plans and health insurers from requiring prior authorization for direct-acting antiviral drugs used to treat hepatitis C, including sofosbuvir/velpatasvir, sofosbuvir/ledipasvir, glecaprevir/pibrentasvir, and elbasvir/grazoprevir.

Bans specific prior authorization requirements for hepatitis C treatment, including liver biopsies, genotype testing, sobriety requirements, fibrosis staging thresholds, elastography/FibroScan documentation, ultrasound documentation, and specialist referrals.

Requires health plans and insurers to align their clinical criteria for hepatitis C treatment with current guidelines from the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases and the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

Allows plans to require prior authorization if therapeutically equivalent versions of a drug exist, provided at least one equivalent version is covered without prior authorization.

Introduced by Assembly Member Elhawary on February 11, 2026, and amended March 2, 2026, removing previously proposed confidentiality provisions for hepatitis B and C public health records.