Bill Text: NY S03749 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Relates to prescription prices and pharmacies for injured employees.

Spectrum: Slight Partisan Bill (Republican 13-7)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-06-21 - COMMITTED TO RULES [S03749 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-S03749-Amended.html

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                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
                                        3749--B
                              2011-2012 Regular Sessions
                                   I N  S E N A T E
                                     March 3, 2011
                                      ___________
       Introduced by Sens. ROBACH, ADDABBO, JOHNSON, McDONALD -- read twice and
         ordered  printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on
         Labor -- committee discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered  reprinted  as
         amended  and  recommitted  to  said committee -- committee discharged,
         bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended  and  recommitted  to  said
         committee
       AN   ACT  to  amend  the  workers'  compensation  law,  in  relation  to
         prescription prices and pharmacies for injured employees
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Paragraph 5 of subdivision (i) of section 13 of the work-
    2  ers' compensation law, as added by chapter 6 of  the  laws  of  2007  is
    3  amended  and  three  new  paragraphs  6,  7  and  8 are added to read as
    4  follows:
    5    (5) [Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter,  if]  IF  an
    6  employer or carrier has contracted with a pharmacy to provide prescribed
    7  medicine  to claimants, then such employer or carrier may require claim-
    8  ants to obtain all prescribed medicines from the pharmacy with which  it
    9  has contracted, except if a medical emergency occurs and it would not be
   10  reasonably  possible  to obtain immediately required prescribed medicine
   11  from the pharmacy with which the employer or carrier has a contract.  An
   12  employer  or  carrier that requires claimants to obtain prescribed medi-
   13  cines from a pharmacy with which it has a contract must notify claimants
   14  of the pharmacy  or  pharmacies  with  which  it  has  a  contract,  the
   15  locations  and  addresses  of the pharmacy or pharmacies, if applicable,
   16  how to initially fill and refill prescriptions through the mail,  inter-
   17  net,  telephone  or other means, and any other required information that
   18  must be supplied to the pharmacy or pharmacies. If the pharmacy or phar-
   19  macies with which the employer or carrier contracts does not offer  mail
   20  order  service and does not have a physical location within a reasonable
   21  distance from the claimant, as defined by regulation of the  board,  the
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD08819-05-1
       S. 3749--B                          2
    1  claimant  may  obtain prescribed medicines at the pharmacy or pharmacies
    2  of his or her choice and the employer or carrier will be liable for such
    3  charges in accordance with the fee schedule prescribed in section  thir-
    4  teen-o of this [chapter] ARTICLE.
    5    (6) NOTWITHSTANDING PARAGRAPH FIVE OF THIS SUBDIVISION, AN EMPLOYER OR
    6  CARRIER SHALL BE PROHIBITED FROM REFUSING TO ALLOW A CLAIMANT TO UTILIZE
    7  A  PHARMACY  OF  HIS OR HER CHOICE TO FURNISH THE PRESCRIBED MEDICATIONS
    8  REQUIRED BY THE CLAIMANT AS LONG AS SUCH PHARMACY'S CHARGES COMPLY  WITH
    9  THE PUBLISHED PRICES.
   10    (7)  ANY  PHARMACY THAT HAS PROVIDED PRESCRIBED MEDICINE TO A CLAIMANT
   11  AND HAS NOT BEEN REIMBURSED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS  OF  PARA-
   12  GRAPH  ONE  OF  THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE ENTITLED TO MAINTAIN AN ACTION
   13  AGAINST THE CARRIER TO RECOVER THE AMOUNTS DUE TO SUCH PHARMACY PURSUANT
   14  TO THIS SUBDIVISION IN ACCORDANCE WITH REGULATIONS TO BE ESTABLISHED  BY
   15  THE  BOARD OR THE CHAIRMAN. WHERE A PHARMACY BILL HAS BEEN DETERMINED TO
   16  BE DUE AND OWING IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF THIS  SUBDIVISION,
   17  THE  BOARD SHALL INCLUDE IN THE AMOUNT OF THE AWARD INTEREST OF NOT MORE
   18  THAN ONE AND ONE-HALF PERCENT PER  MONTH  PAYABLE  TO  THE  PHARMACY  IN
   19  ACCORDANCE WITH THE RULES AND REGULATIONS PROMULGATED BY THE BOARD.
   20    (8)  NOTWITHSTANDING  ANY OTHER PROVISION IN THIS CHAPTER, THE INITIAL
   21  FILL OF A PRESCRIPTION MEDICINE IN CONNECTION WITH A CLAIM FOR  BENEFITS
   22  UNDER THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL NOT CONTAIN A SUPPLY OF SUCH MEDICINE FOR A
   23  PERIOD OF LONGER THAN FOURTEEN DAYS. FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS PARAGRAPH,
   24  "INITIAL  FILL"  SHALL  BE DEFINED AS A PRESCRIPTION OR A COMBINATION OF
   25  PRESCRIPTIONS FOR MEDICATION ISSUED BY AN AUTHORIZED MEDICAL PROVIDER AT
   26  THE TIME OF DISCOVERY  OF  INJURY  OR  ILLNESS  BUT  SHALL  NOT  INCLUDE
   27  PRESCRIPTIONS  THAT  MAY  BE  WRITTEN SEVENTY-TWO HOURS OR MORE FROM THE
   28  TIME OF INITIAL MEDICAL CARE.
   29    S 2.  This act shall take effect immediately.