Safe Step Act

This bill would require employer-sponsored group health plans that use "step therapy" (making patients try preferred drugs before covering a prescribed drug) to offer a process for patients or their prescribers to request an exception. Plans would have to grant exceptions in listed situations, such as when required drugs were ineffective, harmful, or when a patient is already stable on the prescribed drug. Plans would have to respond within 72 hours, or within 24 hours in urgent cases, and approved exceptions would last at least one year. Plans would report yearly data on exception requests to the Secretary of Labor, who would report to Congress.

Full text and official record on Congress.gov

Sponsors

• Lisa Murkowski Republican sponsor
• 52 cosponsors