Month: July 2020

Senator Looney Leads Passage of Bill to Cap Cost of Insulin and Diabetes Supplies

Today, the Connecticut State Senate passed legislation that will provide critical assistance to residents in the state who suffer from diabetes. The bill, HB 6003, contains several provisions to help patients and their families afford insulin. Senate President Pro Tempore Martin M. Looney (D-New Haven) led passage of this bill that will cap the out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $25 per month, cap non-insulin drugs like glucagon, at $25 per month, and cap equipment and supplies like blood glucose test strips, glucometers, lancets, landing devices and insulin syringes at $100 per month for those with state regulated health insurance, such as plans sold through the public exchange and small group plans. Connecticut will become the twelfth state to introduce caps on insulin.

“Passing this legislation has been a priority for the Senate Democratic caucus and I’m pleased to see it finally happen,” said Senate President Martin Looney. “For years, the cost of insulin has continued to exorbitantly rise, putting far too many individuals with diabetes in a position where they may risk their health by attempting to ration their dosage due to cost. This bill will ensure that Connecticut residents are not put in that situation anymore and that these vital medicines are more affordable.”

The bill authorizes pharmacists to prescribe and dispense up to a 30-day supply of insulin if a person has less than a seven-day supply and will otherwise not be able to obtain such insulin. Pharmacists will accept insurance or cash payment. This option is available to patients once every 12-months and pharmacists will update the statewide prescription drug monitoring program to ensure.

These new implementations will now create a new affordable pathway for residents in Connecticut. As a state, we now have the lowest cap altogether, including insulin, noninsulin, equipment and devices. As this moves forward, we continue to try to help people who don’t have insurance using two different approaches. One being to obtain affordable insulin at community health centers and expanding Medicaid to cover folks who have Type 1 diabetes.

Under the federal 340 prescription drug program, individuals who receive health services from federally certified “covered entities,” have access to significantly reduced drug costs. Diabetics with high cost insulin are often good candidates for 340B discounts, especially those with high-deductible health plans. Unfortunately, many people struggling to pay for their insulin are not aware of the federal resources.

The bill establishes a working group to consider whether DSS should implement a new program that direct individuals with diabetes to covered entities. If established, the program would include an informational website that can inform individuals whether their prescribed insulin is available through the 340B program. DSS, through the website, would arrange referrals to a covered entity for an appointment within 30 days.

Senate Democrats Pass Bill To Cap Cost of Insulin and Diabetes Supplies

Today, the Senate Democratic Caucus passed legislation that will help residents in the state who have diabetes. The bill, HB 6003, contains several provisions to help patients and their families afford insulin. It will cap the out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $25 per month, cap noninsulin drugs like glucagon, at $25 per month, and cap equipment and supplies like blood glucose test strips, glucometers, lancets, landing devices and insulin syringes at $100 per month for those with state regulated health insurance, such as plans sold through the public exchange and small group plans. Connecticut will become the twelfth state to introduce caps on insulin.

“Passing this legislation has been a priority for the Senate Democratic caucus and I’m pleased to see it finally happen,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney (D-New Haven). “For years, the cost of insulin has continued to exorbitantly rise, putting far too many individuals with diabetes in a position where they may risk their health by attempting to ration their dosage due to cost. This bill will ensure that Connecticut residents are not put in that situation anymore and that these vital medicines are more affordable.”

“The passage of this bill shows Connecticut leadership at its best,” said Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk). “The rising cost of insulin hurts thousands of people across the country and puts individuals in a precarious situation that sometimes involves them rationing or going without their insulin all together. For diabetics, that is a life-threatening situation and it’s unacceptable. By passing this bill, we are addressing this critical issue and ensuring that diabetics in Connecticut have access to insulin and other necessary medicines and equipment at an affordable cost.”

The bill authorizes pharmacists to prescribe and dispense up to a 30-day supply of insulin if a person has less than a seven-day supply and will otherwise not be able to obtain such insulin. Pharmacists will accept insurance or cash payment. This option is available to patients once every 12-months and pharmacists will update the statewide prescription drug monitoring program to ensure.

These new implementations will now create a new affordable pathway for residents in Connecticut. As a state, we now have the lowest cap altogether, including insulin, noninsulin, equipment and devices. As this moves forward, we continue to try to help people who don’t have insurance using two different approaches. One being to obtain affordable insulin at community health centers and expanding Medicaid to cover folks who have Type 1 diabetes.

Under the federal 340 prescription drug program, individuals who receive health services from federally certified “covered entities,” have access to significantly reduced drug costs. Diabetics with high cost insulin are often good candidates for 340B discounts, especially those with high-deductible health plans. Unfortunately, many people struggling to pay for their insulin are not aware of the federal resources.

The bill establishes a working group to consider whether DSS should implement a new program that direct individuals with diabetes to covered entities. If established, the program would include an informational website that can inform individuals whether their prescribed insulin is available through the 340B program. DSS, through the website, would arrange referrals to a covered entity for an appointment within 30 days.

Senate Democrats Lead Passage of Expanded Absentee Voting Law in Connecticut

HARTFORD – Democratic Senate leaders applauded the final passage in the Senate today of a bill that will allow Connecticut citizens who are concerned about contracting the coronavirus at a polling location this year to vote instead by absentee ballot – an option which had previously been denied them.

The Senate today approved House Bill 6002, “AN ACT CONCERNING ABSENTEE VOTING AT THE 2020 STATE ELECTION AND ELECTION DAY REGISTRATION,” by a vote of 35-1; the bill overwhelmingly passed the House of Representatives last week and now heads to Governor Lamont, who is expected to sign the bill into law.

“We were facing the unconscionable scenario in November’s general election of having an untold number of Connecticut residents put their health and lives at risk in order to exercise their right to vote. That situation had to be prevented,” Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney (D-New Haven) said today. “The bill we have now passed and sent on to the governor is somewhat limited in scope, but its impact should be highly consequential for those who value public participation and making their voices heard on the issues of the day. Voting is the cornerstone of American democracy, and today we protected that critical right for all of Connecticut’s residents.”

“I’ve been invigorated by the public debate around expanding absentee ballot access, and I think it bodes well for any future discussions the legislature may have regarding other changes to Connecticut’s voting regulations which, quite frankly, need to catch up with the times,” Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk) said. “Sometimes it takes a crisis to appreciate not only what you have, but to realize what changes we need to make. Social interaction and the ability to vote your conscience without fear of contracting a deadly disease is something that we all value and that maybe we took a little bit for granted until now. This bill will help remedy any health concerns our citizens may have and will ensure that we can continue with the representative democracy that makes our state and our nation so great.”

Connecticut law currently only allows its state residents to vote by absentee ballot for six specific reasons:

• If the voter is on active duty with the U.S. Armed Forces
• If the voter will be absent from town during the entire time that polls are open
• If the voter is ill
• If the voter has a physical disability which prevents them from voting in person
• If the voter’s religion prohibits them from voting that day
• Or if the voter is working at the polls in a primary, election or referendum

But the global COVID-19 pandemic, which has infected more than 48,000 people in Connecticut and killed more than 4,400 state residents, has raised concerns about standing in line at the polls, or voting in a crowded polling location – especially for the elderly and those with underlying medical conditions, who are particularly susceptible to the coronavirus.

The solution is (House or Senate bill number), which amends Connecticut law for 2020 only to allow for absentee voting due to “the sickness of COVID-19.”

The bill also allows any person who is in line to vote before polls close at 8 p.m. to access Connecticut’s “same-day registration” procedure at that polling location, as long as they meet all of the state’s voter eligibility requirements; existing state law only allows for same-day voter registration from 6 a.m. until 8 p.m. at specific locations in town, but then the voter must proceed to their own local polling place in order to cast their vote.

The issue of expanded absentee voting in Connecticut received widespread support at last week’s public hearing on the bill, when nearly 250 people submitted testimony online or via email. The bill was supported by the AARP, the League of Women Voters, ConnPIRG, the ACLU, the CCAG, disability rights advocates, religious leaders, retirees, civic organizations, municipal officials, social workers, and hundreds of others.

Connecticut has an unusually low absentee voting record when compared to America as a whole. There have been 21.7 million ballots cast in Connecticut over the past 32 years, with only 1.5 million cast via absentee ballot – just seven percent all votes cast, according to online statistics from the Secretary of the State’s office.

But in 2018, 23% of all U.S. residents voted via absentee ballot, according to the U.S. Census – more than three times Connecticut’s average. In 2018, only 60% of Americans physically voted in-person at a polling location, while in Connecticut, 94% of state residents voted in-person.

Senate Democrats Pleased with Passage of Bill Concerning Telehealth Services

Today, the Senate Democratic Caucus is proud of the passage of the bill concerning telehealth services. Telehealth means the virtual mode of delivering health care or other health services via information and communication technologies to facilitate the diagnosis, consultation and treatment, education, care management and self-management of a patient’s physical and mental health. This latest change will provide new tools to physicians and other medical providers in the near future to continue interaction between a patient and telehealth provider and remote patient monitoring.

During the coronavirus crisis in the state, many changes were implemented to keep residents of Connecticut safe including the virtual practice of medicine. The Department of Public Health waived several requirements in order to provide audio and visual communication between providers and patients. Telehealth has played a huge role beginning in the middle of March following the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Providers have been able to perform under federal privacy requirements while providing reliable treatment through these platforms. Teleheath has been proven to be an essential tool during the coronavirus crisis and it will continue to be a tool for physicians and other providers to use in the future if needed. If telehealth wasn’t available through the duration of the pandemic, many physicians and health care professionals would have suffered greater financial hardship.

“Telehealth provides individuals with care and stability and that has been critical during this pandemic,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney (D-New Haven). “This access to care benefits patients and health care professionals and I’m pleased that this legislation will expand telehealth services, ensuring that residents across Connecticut receive the services they need going forward during this difficult time.”

“Throughout this pandemic, we’ve needed to adjust our thinking and habits toward everyday tasks, and telehealth is one of those areas” said Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff (D-Norwalk). “Telehealth brings access to vital health care services and health care professionals to patients without having them compromise their health. Given the uncertainty of COVID-19, this legislation ensures that these services are expanded and available to individuals now and in the foreseeable future, providing assurance that patients are able to fully address their health care needs.”

This bill allows telehealth by audio-only, instead of requiring video. It will impact patients of Medicaid, Children’s health insurance program, and in-network providers. It will expand the types of providers who may provide services through telehealth including dentists, behavior analysts, genetic counselors, music therapists, and art therapists, all of which is currently permitted under EO. The bill also allows telehealth services by additional licensed professions; those being physician assistants, physical therapist assistants, and occupational therapy assistants, nurse midwives, athletic trainers.

Furthermore, the telehealth bill allows providers licensed in other states to provide telehealth services to Connecticut residents provided they have minimum professional liability insurance coverage. It requires a provider to determine whether a patient has health insurance coverage and whether such coverage includes telehealth services, before providing the service.