Colorado House Approves Legislation That Would Bar Insurers From Providing Incentives For Prescribing Generic Drugs

Main Category: Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Also Included In: Pharmacy / Pharmacist
Article Date: 02 May 2008 - 7:00 PST

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

The Colorado House on Monday voted 62-3 to approve a bill (HB 1411) that would ban insurance companies from offering physicians cash incentives to switch patients to less-costly generic versions of prescription drugs, the Denver Post reports. State Rep. Rosemary Marshall (D), sponsor of the bill, said that while the issue of monetary rewards has not yet surfaced in the state, lawmakers should address the issue now to prevent potential harm to patients, as well as debates about how the practice might save money. The bill, which is supported by pharmaceutical companies, has drawn criticism from insurers that believe the law would damage pay-for-performance systems that compensate physicians for cutting health care costs and penalize them for spending too much, the Post reports. The bill now moves to the Senate (Fender, Denver Post, 4/29).

Reprinted with kind permission from http://www.kaisernetwork.org. You can view the entire Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, search the archives, or sign up for email delivery at http://www.kaisernetwork.org/dailyreports/healthpolicy. The Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report is published for kaisernetwork.org, a free service of The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.

© 2008 Advisory Board Company and Kaiser Family Foundation. All rights reserved.