(The Center Square) – Health insurance procedures will look different in Illinois if legislation advancing through Springfield becomes law, but some are concerned about the cost to taxpayers.
In the latest push for health insurance reform, Gov. J.B. Pritzker is taking aim at what he calls “predatory health insurance practices” with his Healthcare Protection Act.
Among other things, the legislation would ban step therapy, the tactic insurers use to require people to receive less effective drug treatments before moving to options initially prescribed by doctors. It also includes new requirements for insurers to offer enough in-network doctors to meet patients’ needs.
The proposal would make Illinois the first state in the country to ban prior authorization for in-patient adult and children’s mental health care.
“The bill’s purpose is to make quality care easier to access for patients all across the state of Illinois and to increase accountability in insurance companies,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker
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