Bill > A05157

This bill aims to reduce financial barriers for patients seeking follow-up care and refills for short-term opioid prescriptions by prohibiting insurance companies from charging additional fees for a single follow-up visit and refill. Specifically, the bill mandates that insurance policies covering opioid medications cannot impose any co-payments, co-insurance, deductibles, or other financial conditions for one follow-up appointment and subsequent refill when the initial opioid prescription was written for seven days or less. After this initial follow-up, practitioners can continue to issue renewals, refills, or new prescriptions as medically appropriate. The legislation is designed to encourage patients to seek necessary medical follow-up and potentially help manage pain treatment without additional financial burdens. The bill will go into effect 90 days after becoming law, applying to insurance policies in New York State. This provision could help address potential barriers to continued medical care and medication management for patients initially prescribed short-term opioid medications.

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https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/bills/2025/A5157