Alaska Stat. § 21.27.951

Current through Chapter 61 of the 2024 Legislative Session and 2024 Executive Orders 125, 133 through 135
Section 21.27.951 - [Effective 1/1/2025] Patient access to clinician-administered drugs
(a) An insurer or its pharmacy benefits manager may not
(1) refuse to authorize, approve, or pay a provider for providing covered clinician-administered drugs and related services to a covered person if the provider has agreed to participate in the insurer's health care insurance policy according to the terms offered by the insurer or its pharmacy benefits manager;
(2) if the criteria for medical necessity are met, condition, deny, restrict, or refuse to authorize or approve a provider for a clinician-administered drug because the provider obtained the clinician-administered drug from a pharmacy that is not a network pharmacy in the insurer's or its pharmacy benefits manager's network;
(3) require a pharmacy to dispense a clinician-administered drug directly to a covered person or agent of the insured with the intention that the covered person or the agent of the insured will transport the medication to a provider for administration;
(4) require or encourage the dispensing of a clinician-administered drug to a covered person in a manner that is inconsistent with the supply chain security controls and chain of distribution set by 21 U.S.C. 360eee - 360eee-4 (Drug Supply Chain Security Act);
(5) require that a clinician-administered drug be dispensed or administered to a covered person in the residence of the covered person or require use of an infusion site external to the office, department, or clinic of the provider of the covered person; nothing in this paragraph prohibits the insurer or its pharmacy benefits manager, or an agent of the insurer or its pharmacy benefits manager, from offering the use of a home infusion pharmacy or external infusion site.
(b) If a health insurance policy provides in-network and out-of-network benefits and there is not an in-network health care provider or health care facility within a 50-mile radius of the primary residence of a covered person, the health insurance policy must provide coverage to the covered person for clinician-administered drugs at the minimum in-network benefit level.
(c) In this section, "clinician-administered drug" means a drug, other than a vaccine, that requires administration by a provider and that the United States Food and Drug Administration or the drug's manufacturer has not approved for self-administration.

AS 21.27.951

Added by SLA 2024, ch. 61,sec. 10, eff. 1/1/2025, app. to an insurance policy or contract, including a contract between a pharmacy benefits manager and a pharmacy or pharmacist, issued, delivered, entered into, renewed, or amended on or after 1/1/2025.