SB 445 Summary

• Prohibits pharmacy benefits managers and health carriers from penalizing pharmacists who disclose to patients the cost of medications or availability of cheaper alternatives, effective January 1, 2018.

• Limits patient point-of-sale payments for covered prescriptions to the lesser of: applicable copayment, allowable claim amount, or cash price, effective January 1, 2018.

• Requires hospitals to enable bidirectional electronic health record exchange with other healthcare providers upon patient request, to the fullest extent practicable, effective October 1, 2017.

• Mandates hospitals and health systems provide written notice to patients before charging facility fees, including estimated costs and comparison to Medicare rates, with notice requirements varying by appointment scheduling timeline.

• Prohibits hospitals from charging facility fees for off-campus outpatient evaluation and management services and limits facility fees for uninsured patients to the Medicare rate, effective January 1, 2017.