Del. Margaret Ransone

Requires each hospital to establish a protocol requiring that, before a health care provider arranges for air medical transportation services for a patient who does not have an emergency medical condition, the hospital provide the patient or his authorized representative with written or electronic notice that the patient (i) may have a choice of transportation by an air medical transportation provider or medically appropriate ground transportation by an emergency medical services provider and (ii) will be responsible for charges incurred for such transportation in the event that the provider is not a contracted network provider of the patient's health insurance carrier or such charges are not otherwise covered in full or in part by the patient's health insurance plan. The provisions of such requirement become effective on March 1, 2019. The bill directs the Office of Emergency Medical Services to develop a mechanism no later than January 1, 2019, to disclose to a patient, prior to services provided by an out-of-network air transport provider, a good faith estimate of the range of typical charges for out-of-network air transport services provided in that geographic area.

Provides that a practitioner may issue a written certification for the use of cannabidiol (CBD) oil or THC-A oil for the treatment or to alleviate the symptoms of any diagnosed condition or disease determined by the practitioner to benefit from such use. Under current law, a practitioner may only issue such certification for the treatment or to alleviate the symptoms of intractable epilepsy. The bill increases the supply of CBD oil or THC-A oil a pharmaceutical processor may dispense from a 30-day supply to a 90-day supply. The bill reduces the minimum amount of cannabidiol or tetrahydrocannabinol acid per milliliter for a dilution of the Cannabis plant to fall under the definition of CBD oil or THC-A oil, respectively. As introduced, this bill was a recommendation of the Joint Commission on Health Care. The bill contains an emergency clause. This bill is identical to

Provides that no provider contract between a health carrier or its pharmacy benefits manager and a pharmacy or its contracting agent shall contain a provision (i) authorizing the carrier or its pharmacy benefits manager to charge, (ii) requiring the pharmacy or pharmacist to collect, or (iii) requiring an enrollee to make, a copayment for a covered prescription drug in an amount that exceeds the least of the applicable copayment for the prescription drug that would be payable in the absence of this section or the cash price the enrollee would pay for the prescription drug if the enrollee purchased the prescription drug without using the enrollee's health plan. The measure requires provider contracts between a health carrier or its pharmacy benefits manager and a pharmacy or its contracting agent to contain specific provisions that allow a pharmacy to (a) disclose to an enrollee information relating to the provisions of this section and the availability of a more affordable therapeutically equivalent prescription drug; (b) sell a more affordable therapeutically equivalent prescription drug to an enrollee if one is available; and (c) offer and provide direct and limited delivery services to an enrollee as an ancillary service of the pharmacy. The measure applies to provider contracts entered into, amended, extended, or renewed on or after January 1, 2019. This bill is identical to