Voice Your Support
Regulate the Use of Fail First and Step Therapy Policies
by Insurance Companies
While the state budget has been our primary advocacy focus for the last few weeks (and we will have detailed information on that in tomorrow's E-Newsletter), it is also important to continue to push for the passage of
S.3419-B/ A.2834-B, which would regulate the inappropriate use by health insurance companies of "fail first" or "step therapy" protocols. This practice can cause harmful delays to patients in accessing their needed medications.
Step therapy policies are especially dangerous for people living with psychiatric disorders, as anti-psychotics and anti-depressants are not interchangeable
and people who have mental illnesses often take medicine for co-occurring disorders, and while a doctor who prescribes a medication will take into account drug interactions, an insurance company may not.
This is an issue gaining momentum nationally. This week Indiana signed a step therapy regulation bill into law; they were the seventh state to pass legislation and we must work together to make New York next.
Click here to view a map of states that have passed laws and those where legislation is pending.
TAKE ACTION!!!
Click here to see a draft letter/email you can send to your Assembly member and Senator and a script for calling your legislator. If you or a loved one have been impacted by step therapy please make sure to include that in your correspondence with your legislators.
Other Step Therapy Resources
Click here to watch NAMI-NYS discuss step therapy on the
Capital Tonight news program.
Click here for a resource that dispels the myths about step therapy regulation.
Participate in Fail First Regulation Advocacy Day on May 23rd
If you are interested in attending please email Matthew Shapiro at
[email protected] by April 22nd.
Thank you for Taking Action
Hope Starts With You!!!
|