Bill > HB1206

This bill establishes the "Hope for Missouri Patients Act," which creates a framework for eligible patients with life-threatening or severely debilitating illnesses to access individualized investigational treatments. The bill defines an eligible patient as someone who has exhausted FDA-approved treatment options, received a physician's recommendation based on genomic analysis, and provided informed written consent. Manufacturers operating in eligible facilities (institutions with a Federalwide Assurance for Human Subjects protection) may provide these unique, patient-specific treatments, such as gene therapies or neoantigen vaccines, without being required to do so. The bill explicitly states that health insurers and government agencies are not obligated to cover these experimental treatments. Key protections include preventing licensing boards from penalizing healthcare providers who recommend these treatments, shielding manufacturers from liability if they act in good faith, and ensuring that patients understand the potential risks, including the possibility of worsening symptoms or hastened death. The legislation also clarifies that patients are responsible for treatment costs and that their estate will not be liable for treatment-related debts if the patient dies. Importantly, the bill prohibits state officials from blocking patient access to these individualized investigational treatments.

https://house.mo.gov/Bill.aspx?bill=HB1206&year=2025&code=R