The Vermont Statutes Online
The Statutes below include the actions of the 2024 session of the General Assembly.
NOTE: The Vermont Statutes Online is an unofficial copy of the Vermont Statutes Annotated that is provided as a convenience.
Title 8 : Banking and Insurance
Chapter 107 : Health Insurance
Subchapter 001 : GENERALLY
(Cite as: 8 V.S.A. § 4089i)-
§ 4089i. Prescription drug coverage
(a) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer shall provide coverage for prescription drugs purchased in Canada, and used in Canada or reimported legally or purchased through the I-SaveRx program on the same benefit terms and conditions as prescription drugs purchased in this country. For drugs purchased by mail or through the Internet, the plan may require accreditation by the Internet and Mailorder Pharmacy Accreditation Commission (IMPAC/tm) or similar organization.
(b) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or pharmacy benefit manager shall not include an annual dollar limit on prescription drug benefits.
(c) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or pharmacy benefit manager shall limit a beneficiary’s out-of-pocket expenditures for prescription drugs, including specialty drugs, to no more for self-only and family coverage per year than the minimum dollar amounts in effect under Section 223(c)(2)(A)(i) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for self-only and family coverage, respectively.
(d) For prescription drug benefits offered in conjunction with a high-deductible health plan (HDHP), the plan may not provide prescription drug benefits until the expenditures applicable to the deductible under the HDHP have met the amount of the minimum annual deductibles in effect for self-only and family coverage under Section 223(c)(2)(A)(i) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 for self-only and family coverage, respectively, except that a plan may offer first-dollar prescription drug benefits to the extent permitted under federal law. Once the foregoing expenditure amount has been met under the HDHP, coverage for prescription drug benefits shall begin, and the limit on out-of-pocket expenditures for prescription drug benefits shall be as specified in subsection (c) of this section.
[Subsection (e) effective until January 1, 2025; see also subsection (e) effective January 1, 2025 set out below.]
(e)(1) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or by a pharmacy benefit manager on behalf of a health insurer that provides coverage for prescription drugs and uses step-therapy protocols shall not require failure on the same medication on more than one occasion for continuously enrolled members or subscribers.
(2) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the use of tiered co-payments for members or subscribers not subject to a step-therapy protocol.
(3) Notwithstanding subdivision (1) of this subsection, a health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by an insurer or by a pharmacy benefit manager on behalf of a health insurer that provides coverage for prescription drugs shall not utilize a step-therapy, “fail first,” or other protocol that requires documented trials of a medication, including a trial documented through a “MedWatch” (FDA Form 3500), before approving a prescription for the treatment of substance use disorder.
[Subsection (e) effective January 1, 2025; see also subsection (e) effective until January 1, 2025 set out above.]
(e)(1) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or by a pharmacy benefit manager on behalf of a health insurer that provides coverage for prescription drugs and uses step-therapy protocols shall:
(A) not require failure, including discontinuation due to lack of efficacy or effectiveness, diminished effect, or an adverse event, on the same medication on more than one occasion for insureds who are continuously enrolled in a plan offered by the insurer or its pharmacy benefit manager; and
(B) grant an exception to its step-therapy protocols upon request of an insured or the insured’s treating health care professional under the same time parameters as set forth for prior authorization requests in 18 V.S.A. § 9418b(g)(4) if any one or more of the following conditions apply:
(i) the prescription drug required under the step-therapy protocol is contraindicated or will likely cause an adverse reaction or physical or mental harm to the insured;
(ii) the prescription drug required under the step-therapy protocol is expected to be ineffective based on the insured’s known clinical history, condition, and prescription drug regimen;
(iii) the insured has already tried the prescription drugs on the protocol, or other prescription drugs in the same pharmacologic class or with the same mechanism of action, which have been discontinued due to lack of efficacy or effectiveness, diminished effect, or an adverse event, regardless of whether the insured was covered at the time on a plan offered by the current insurer or its pharmacy benefit manager;
(iv) the insured is stable on a prescription drug selected by the insured’s treating health care professional for the medical condition under consideration; or
(v) the step-therapy protocol or a prescription drug required under the protocol is not in the patient’s best interests because it will:
(I) pose a barrier to adherence;
(II) likely worsen a comorbid condition; or
(III) likely decrease the insured’s ability to achieve or maintain reasonable functional ability.
(2) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prohibit the use of tiered co-payments for members or subscribers not subject to a step-therapy protocol.
(3) Notwithstanding any provision of subdivision (1) of this subsection to the contrary, a health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by an insurer or by a pharmacy benefit manager on behalf of a health insurer that provides coverage for prescription drugs shall not utilize a step-therapy, “fail first,” or other protocol that requires documented trials of a medication, including a trial documented through a “MedWatch” (FDA Form 3500), before approving a prescription for the treatment of substance use disorder.
(f)(1) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or by a pharmacy benefit manager on behalf of a health insurer that provides coverage for prescription drugs shall not require, as a condition of coverage, use of drugs not indicated by the federal Food and Drug Administration for the condition diagnosed and being treated under supervision of a health care professional.
(2) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to prevent a health care professional from prescribing a medication for off-label use.
(g) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or by a pharmacy benefit manager on behalf of a health insurer that provides coverage for prescription drugs shall apply the same cost-sharing requirements to interchangeable biological products as apply to generic drugs under the plan.
(h)(1) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or pharmacy benefit manager shall limit a beneficiary’s total out-of-pocket responsibility for prescription insulin medications to not more than $100.00 per 30-day supply, regardless of the amount, type, or number of insulin medications prescribed for the beneficiary.
(2) The $100.00 monthly limit on out-of-pocket spending for prescription insulin medications set forth in subdivision (1) of this subsection shall apply regardless of whether the beneficiary has satisfied any applicable deductible requirement under the health insurance or health benefit plan.
[Subsection (i) effective until January 1, 2025; see also subsection (i) effective January 1, 2025 set out below.]
(i) As used in this section:
(1) “Health care professional” means an individual licensed to practice medicine under 26 V.S.A. chapter 23 or 33, an individual licensed as a physician assistant under 26 V.S.A. chapter 31, or an individual licensed as an advanced practice registered nurse under 26 V.S.A. chapter 28.
(2) “Health insurer” shall have the same meaning as in 18 V.S.A. § 9402.
(3) “Out-of-pocket expenditure” means a co-payment, coinsurance, deductible, or other cost-sharing mechanism.
(4) “Pharmacy benefit manager” shall have the same meaning as in section 4089j of this title.
(5) “Step therapy” means protocols that establish the specific sequence in which prescription drugs for a specific medical condition are to be prescribed.
(6) “Interchangeable biological products” shall have the same meaning as in 18 V.S.A. § 4601.
(7) “Prescription insulin medication” means a prescription medication that contains insulin and is used to treat diabetes.
[Subsection (i) effective January 1, 2025; see also subsection (i) effective until January 1, 2025 set out above.]
(i) A health insurance or other health benefit plan offered by a health insurer or by a pharmacy benefit manager on behalf of a health insurer shall cover, without requiring prior authorization, at least one readily available asthma controller medication from each class of medication and mode of administration. As used in this subsection, “readily available” means that the medication is not listed on a national drug shortage list, including lists maintained by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and by the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.
[Subsection (j) effective until January 1, 2025; see also subsection (j) effective January 1, 2025 set out below.]
(j) The Department of Financial Regulation shall enforce this section and may adopt rules as necessary to carry out the purposes of this section.
[Subsection (j) effective January 1, 2025; see also subsection (j) effective until January 1, 2025 set out above.]
(j) As used in this section:
(1) “Health care professional” means an individual licensed to practice medicine under 26 V.S.A. chapter 23 or 33, an individual licensed as a physician assistant under 26 V.S.A. chapter 31, or an individual licensed as an advanced practice registered nurse under 26 V.S.A. chapter 28.
(2) “Health insurer” shall have the same meaning as in 18 V.S.A. § 9402.
(3) “Out-of-pocket expenditure” means a co-payment, coinsurance, deductible, or other cost-sharing mechanism.
(4) “Pharmacy benefit manager” shall have the same meaning as in section 4089j of this title.
(5) “Step therapy” means protocols that establish the specific sequence in which prescription drugs for a specific medical condition are to be prescribed.
(6) “Interchangeable biological products” shall have the same meaning as in 18 V.S.A. § 4601.
(7) “Prescription insulin medication” means a prescription medication that contains insulin and is used to treat diabetes.
[Subsection (k) effective January 1, 2025.]
(k) The Department of Financial Regulation shall enforce this section and may adopt rules as necessary to carry out the purposes of this section. (Added 2003, No. 122 (Adj. Sess.), § 128l; amended 2005, No. 2, § 5, eff. Feb. 17, 2005; 2011, No. 171 (Adj. Sess.), § 32; 2013, No. 79, § 3; 2017, No. 193 (Adj. Sess.), § 6; 2019, No. 154 (Adj. Sess.), § E.307.1, eff. Jan. 1, 2022; 2023, No. 22, § 6, eff. May 25, 2023; 2023, No. 111 (Adj. Sess.), § 1, eff. January 1, 2025.)
