Halpin-Backed Law Cutting Pharmacy Red Tape Soon Taking Effect

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – Patients who need rapid access to their prescriptions will no longer be held up by insurance companies’ red tape under a bill backed by state Rep. Mike Halpin, D-Rock Island, which will take effect on Jan. 1.

“We need to build a health care system that can deliver affordable prescription drugs without a long wait time,” Halpin said. “Endless red tape from insurance and pharmaceutical companies clogs up the prescription filling process, hikes up costs and generally makes it harder for sick people and their families to get what they need.”

Halpin worked to pass House Bill 2160, which requires the Department of Insurance (DOI) and the Department of Health and Family Services (HFS) to develop simple, uniform authorization forms for prescription drugs, which providers and insurers must use. There are currently numerous unique authorization forms necessary for every specific insurer. Beginning in January, all forms will be combined into one for commercial insurers and one for managed care organizations. The bill received bipartisan support and is now law.

“I’m committed to creating a less expensive, more efficient health care system in Illinois,” Halpin said. “This law will bring us closer to that goal by eliminating bureaucratic paperwork and therefore streamlining access to critical prescription drugs.”