What's happening
This bill creates the Pharmaceutical Local Choice Program, allowing seniors with insurance to fill prescriptions at local pharmacies without financial penalties.
Why it matters
Strengthens consumer choice for seniors. By mandating that insurance policies must allow seniors to use local pharmacies without penalties, the bill empowers older adults to choose where to fill prescriptions, potentially increasing their comfort, trust, and convenience.
Supports local businesses. The program could help sustain and bolster community pharmacies, which often struggle to compete with large mail-order or non-resident establishments, thereby helping to maintain local jobs and services.
Addresses insurance plan restrictions. Many insurance plans currently steer patients toward specific (often out-of-state or mail-order) pharmacies, sometimes causing delays or complications—this bill directly counters those practices, aiming to reduce burdens or barriers for seniors.
Limits on scope and disruption. The bill carves out exceptions for collectively bargained insurance plans and those preempted by federal law, and ensures that no additional costs or restrictive practices (such as increased copays or reduced quantities) can be imposed on seniors who use local pharmacies, thus aiming for fairness without unintended negative consequences.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Let Seniors Choose Pharmacies
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
4 Multi-sponsors
History
- Referred to aging
- Referred to aging
Full text
2 pagesUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
2108
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 22, 2019
Introduced by M. of A. ENGLEBRIGHT, COLTON, JAFFEE, GALEF, PERRY -- Multi-Sponsored by -- M. of A. ABBATE, GUNTHER, McDONOUGH, PAULIN -read once and referred to the Committee on Aging
AN ACT to amend the elder law, in relation to creating the pharmaceutical local choice program
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Article 2 of the elder law is amended by adding a new title 4 to read as follows:
TITLE 4
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
Section 255. Pharmaceutical local choice program.
§ 255. Pharmaceutical local choice program. 1. Any provision of any other law to the contrary notwithstanding, every health insurance policy which provides coverage to any person sixty years of age or older for prescribed drugs that includes a requirement that insureds obtain prescription drugs from a non-resident establishment, as defined in section sixty-eight hundred eight-b of the education law, shall additionally provide that an insured may obtain such prescription drugs in the quantity allowed by law as ordered by a prescriber legally authorized to write a prescription, in any therapeutic category or for any medical condition without any financial disincentive or penalty from a pharmacy registered with the education department pursuant to section sixty-eight hundred eight of the education law which, insofar as reasonable, shall be located and accessible in the local community of the insured and which shall be a pharmacy under contract to provide prescription drugs for the insured. For purposes of this section, the term "health insurance policy" shall mean and include any policy of accident and health insurance delivered or issued for delivery in this state, as described in subsection (i) of section three thousand two
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05062-01-9
A. 2108 2
hundred sixteen of the insurance law, to any person sixty years of age or older and any group or blanket policy delivered or issued for delivery in this state, as described in section three thousand two hundred twenty-one of the insurance law to any person sixty years of age or older.
2. The provisions of subdivision one of this section (a) shall not apply to health insurance policies the provisions of which are subject to collective bargaining agreements which are in contradiction to the requirements of such subdivision or which are preempted by any federal law, rule or other regulation; (b) shall only apply to policies and contracts issued, renewed, modified, altered or amended on or after the effective date of this section; and (c) shall not impose or require any other differences in treatment for the use of such local pharmacy with respect to co-payments or quantity limitations or other similar payments or limitations.
§ 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2019.
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.