Ohio Academy of Family Physicians Past President and Public Policy Committee Vice Chair Sarah Sams, MD, represented the OAFP at a press conference on November 13 where speakers urged state senators to act on step therapy legislation (House Bill (HB) 72 and Senate Bill (SB) 56) prior to the end of the General Assembly. Dr. Sams provided specific examples about how her patients and their health care were negatively impacted by the step therapy practices utilized by health insurance plans.
The primary messages delivered during the press conference were:
- The bills under consideration reform step therapy practices; the bills do not seek to ban step therapy
- Sixty organizations support step the therapy bills (HB 72/SB56), which have undergone many compromises by various stakeholders since 2015
- The bills have 4 specific circumstances by which the treating physician may request an exemption to get the patient the prescribed treatment
- Of the states that have passed similar step therapy reform bills, none have shown any additional costs incurred.
The OAFP strongly supports step therapy reform legislation as a means for achieving administrative simplification in health care.
Thank you, Dr. Sams, for speaking out for patients!