Insurance Bills Receive Discussion

February 1, 2018

More than half a dozen bills relating to insurance regulation and health care policies were discussed in the Iowa House and Senate this week. Some pieces of legislation advanced while others need additional work before the members of subcommittees felt comfortable moving the legislation to the committee level.

Subcommittees in the House and Senate were held this week on legislation that ABI opposes:

  • SSB 3003/HSB 516 – The bill would prevent insurance companies and Pharmacy Benefits Managers (PBMs) from holding down drug costs by preventing limiting or excluding coverage of certain drugs. The bill prevents the removal of certain drugs from the drug formulary or from switching covered drugs to a generic version when a patient is stable on a drug, even when patient safety is at risk. Neither the House or Senate advanced the bills out of subcommittee.
  • SF 2103 – Allows providers of emergency medical services to receive in-network benefits, even if they are out-of-network, raising costs on employers and individuals. A similar bill has been discussed the past few years for dental insurance. The Senate moved the bill out of subcommittee to continue work on the bill.
  • SSB 3004 – Requires all health insurance companies to provide a certain percentage of their plans with no-deductible copays for drugs. Both Wellmark and Medica already offer a plan that meets this criteria. The bill did not advance out of the Senate subcommittee.

Several Iowa Insurance Division bills advanced out of subcommittee and the House Commerce committee this week with no opposition and insurance industry support:

  • HSB 582 – Streamlines and makes uniform service of process requirements in the code for the Insurance Division
  • HSB 583 – Code cleanup to conform with previously passed legislation
  • HSB 584 – Various provisions pertaining to the Iowa Uniform Securities Act, senior living facilities and sale of funeral merchandise
  • HSB 585 – A bill supported by the insurance industry to ensure insurance companies can be made whole through pecuniary damages in cases of criminal restitution