Bill Text: CA SB866 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Amended

California Senate Bill 866 (Prior Session Legislation)

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: Health care coverage: prescription drugs.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2011-10-09 - Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 648, Statutes of 2011. [SB866 Detail]

Download: California-2011-SB866-Amended.html

BILL NUMBER: SB 866	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN SENATE  APRIL 11, 2011

INTRODUCED BY   Senator Hernandez

                        FEBRUARY 18, 2011

   An act to add Section 1367.241 to the Health and Safety Code, and
to add Section 10123.191 to the Insurance Code, relating to health
care coverage.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   SB 866, as amended, Hernandez. Health care coverage: prescription
drugs.
   Existing law, the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975,
provides for the regulation of health care service plans by the
Department of Managed Health Care and makes a willful violation of
the act a crime. Existing law provides for the regulation of health
insurers by the Department of Insurance. Commonly referred to as
utilization review, existing law governs the procedures that apply to
every health care service plan and health insurer that
prospectively, retrospectively, or concurrently reviews and approves,
modifies, delays, or denies, based on medical necessity, requests by
providers prior to, retrospectively, or concurrent with, the
provision of health care services to enrollees or insureds, as
specified.
   Existing law also imposes various requirements and restrictions on
health care service plans and health insurers, including, among
other things, a prohibition on health care service plans and health
insurers that provide prescription drug benefits from excluding or
limiting coverage for a drug on the basis that the drug is prescribed
for a use that is different from the use for which the drug has been
approved for marketing by the federal Food and Drug Administration.
Existing law also requires a health care service plan that provides
prescription drug benefits to maintain an expeditious process by
which prescribing providers, as described, may obtain authorization
for a medically necessary nonformulary prescription drug, according
to certain procedures.
   This bill would require the Department of Managed Health Care and
the Department of Insurance to, on or before July 1, 2012, develop a
prior authorization form for use by every health care service plan
and health insurer that provides prescription drug benefits  ,
except as specified  . The bill would require every 
physician   prescribing provider, as defined  ,
when requesting prior authorization for prescription drug benefits,
to submit the prior authorization form to the health care service
plan or health insurer, and would require those plans and insurers to
utilize and accept those prior authorization forms for prescription
drug benefits. Upon a failure to accept the prior authorization form
or to respond to a  physician   prescribing
provider  within 48 hours, the bill would deem the prior
authorization request as granted, as specified.
   Because a willful violation of the bill's provisions relative to
health care service plans would be a crime, the bill would impose a
state-mandated local program.
   The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local
agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
   This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  Section 1367.241 is added to the Health and Safety
Code, to read:
   1367.241.  (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, on and
after July 1, 2012, a health care service plan that provides
prescription drug benefits shall accept only the prior authorization
form developed pursuant to subdivision (c) when requiring prior
authorization for prescription drug benefits.  This section does
not apply in the event that a physician or physician group has been
delegated the financial risk for prescription drugs by a health care
service plan and does not use a prior authorization process. 
   (b) If a health care service plan fails to utilize or accept the
prior authorization form  ,  or fails to respond within 48
hours to a prior authorization request from a  physician
  prescribing provider   ,  pursuant to
the submission of a prior authorization form, the prior authorization
request shall be deemed to have been granted.
   (c) On or before July 1, 2012, the department and the Department
of Insurance shall jointly develop a uniform prior authorization form
that, notwithstanding any other provision of law, every 
physician   prescribing provider  shall use to
request prior authorization for coverage of prescription drug
benefits and that every health care service plan shall accept as
sufficient to request prior authorization for prescription drug
benefits.
   (d) The prior authorization form developed pursuant to subdivision
(c) shall meet the following criteria:
   (1) The form shall not exceed two pages. 
   (2) The form shall be electronically available and electronically
transmissible.  
   (2) The form shall be made electronically available by the
department and the health care service plan.  
   (3) The completed form may also be electronically submitted from
the prescribing provider to the health care service plan. 

   (3) 
    (4)  The department and the Department of Insurance
shall develop the form with input from interested parties from at
least one public meeting. 
   (5) The department and the Department of Insurance, in development
of the standardized form, shall take into consideration the
following:  
   (A) Existing prior authorization forms established by the federal
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid and the State Department of Health
Care Services.  
   (B) National standards pertaining to electronic prior
authorization.  
   (e) For purposes of this section, a "prescribing provider" shall
include a provider authorized to write a prescription, pursuant to
subdivision (a) of Section 4040 of the Business and Professions Code,
to treat a medical condition of an enrollee. 
  SEC. 2.  Section 10123.191 is added to the Insurance Code, to read:

   10123.191.  (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, on and
after July 1, 2012, a health insurer that provides prescription drug
benefits shall utilize and accept only the prior authorization form
developed pursuant to subdivision (c) when requiring prior
authorization for prescription drug benefits.
   (b) If a health insurer fails to utilize or accept the prior
authorization form  ,  or fails to respond within 48 hours
to a prior authorization request from a  physician 
 prescribing provider,  pursuant to the submission of a
prior authorization form, the prior authorization request shall be
deemed to have been granted.
   (c) On or before July 1, 2012, the department and the Department
of Managed Health Care shall jointly develop a uniform prior
authorization form that, notwithstanding any other provision of law,
every  physician   prescribing provider 
shall use to request prior authorization for coverage of prescription
drug benefits and that every health insurer shall accept as
sufficient to request prior authorization for prescription drug
benefits.
   (d) The prior authorization form developed pursuant to subdivision
(c) shall meet the following criteria:
   (1) The form shall not exceed two pages. 
   (2) The form shall be electronically available and electronically
transmissible.  
   (2) The form shall be made electronically available by the
department and the health insurer.  
   (3) The completed form may also be electronically submitted from
the prescribing provider to the health insurer.  
   (3) 
    (4   )  The department and the Department of
Managed Health Care shall develop the form with input from interested
parties from at least one public meeting. 
   (5) The department and the Department of Managed Health Care, in
development of the standardized form, shall take into consideration
the following:  
   (A) Existing prior authorization forms established by the federal
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid and the State Department of Health
Care Services.  
   (B) National standards pertaining to electronic prior
authorization.  
   (e) For purposes of this section, a "prescribing provider" shall
include a provider authorized to write a prescription, pursuant to
subdivision (a) of Section 4040 of the Business and Professions Code,
to treat a medical condition of an insured. 
  SEC. 3.  No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.