Engrossed Version
Senate Bill 621 History
OTHER VERSIONS -
Introduced Version
|
| Email
Key: Green = existing Code. Red = new code to be enacted
ENGROSSED
Senate Bill No. 621
(By Senators Stollings, Jenkins, Foster, Hall and Plymale)
____________
[Introduced February 16, 2007; referred to the Committee on
Government Organization.]
____________
A BILL
to amend the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, by
adding thereto a new section, designated §33-4-21, relating to
legislative rule-making authority of the West Virginia
Insurance Commissioner; requiring development of a standard
format for preferred drug lists and drug formularies; and
requiring the format to be maintained and available
electronically.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, be amended
by adding thereto a new section, designated §33-4-21, to read as
follows:
ARTICLE 4. GENERAL PROVISIONS.
§33-4-21. Format for preferred drug lists; rule-making authority.
(a) The commissioner, in consultation with the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Resources, the Director of the
Public Employees Insurance Agency and the Board of Pharmacy, shall
propose rules for legislative approval in accordance with the
provisions of article three, chapter twenty-nine-a of this code to
develop a standardized format for all preferred drug lists or drug
formularies used in West Virginia. To the extent jurisdiction
exists
, the rules apply to all entities regulated by the Insurance
Commissioner as set forth in this chapter, the Bureau for Medical
Services within the Department of Health and Human Resources, the
Public Employees Insurance Agency within the Department of
Administration, all pharmacy benefit managers registered or
licensed pursuant to the provisions of this chapter and any other
entity that routinely utilizes a preferred drug list or drug
formulary for outpatient pharmaceutical
s.
(b) The rules required in subsection (a) of this section shall
provide:
(1) For a requirement that all preferred drug lists and drug
formularies use a standard format, including recognizing that
entities may have multiple preferred drug list drugs or drug
formularies, that purchasers may change entities or preferred drug
lists or drug formularies and that
entities
may have preferred drug
lists or drug formularies
which are used in multiple states
;
(2) As authorized under federal law, that the preferred drug
list or drug formulary developed by an entity
is valid and reliable
for a reasonable period of time and allows for alteration to the preferred drug list or drug formulary
if new medications become
available on the market, medications become available generically,
treatment warnings are issued by agencies of the federal government
or nationally recognized health experts or agencies of the federal
government allow for additional treatments by the use of previously
approved medications; and
(3) That once complete, the preferred drug list or drug
formulary is made available electronically on the internet.
(c) Nothing in this section permits the commissioner to
require what substances are included upon any individual preferred
drug list or drug
formulary.
(d) No rule promulgated pursuant to the provisions of this
section shall be in conflict with the standards developed by the
federal government in regard to the Medicare Pharmacy Part D
Program.
(e) Any rule promulgated pursuant to the provisions of this
section shall be
consistent with standards developed by nationally
recognized entities engaged in the establishment of national
standards for pharmaceutical point of sale transactions.