S.B. No. 357 Summary

• Requires health insurers, sickness and accident insurers, public employee benefit plans, and Medicaid to cover abuse-deterrent opioid analgesic drug products in their drug formularies.

• Prohibits prior authorization requirements and utilization review measures for abuse-deterrent opioid products from being more restrictive than those applied to non-abuse-deterrent opioid products.

• Prevents insurers and Medicaid from requiring patients to first try non-abuse-deterrent opioids before accessing abuse-deterrent opioid products.

• Prohibits financial or other penalties against prescribers for prescribing abuse-deterrent opioid products or for deciding not to prescribe any opioid products.

• Effective January 1, 2017 for new and renewed health insurance policies and Medicaid contracts, with parallel provisions for multiple employer welfare arrangements.