Delaware residents with illnesses that require costly specialty drugs will soon receive some financial relief.
Gov. Jack Markell signed a bill into law Tuesday capping the costs for drugs to treat serious conditions such as hemophilia, HIV, hepatitis and multiple sclerosis.
Under the new law, co-pays for specialty drugs will be limited to $150 per month for a 30-day supply each drug needed. Patients will also be able to request an exception to obtain a specialty drug that would not otherwise be available on their health plan.
"We are spending a lot of time these days focused on how we can improve the way health care is delivered an to reduce the cost. This a heavy lift," said Markell. "I believe this bill is an important bill related to all of that, especially to help some of the patients and their families in Delaware who face some significant financial challenges."
The bill's main sponsor, Senate Majority Whip Margaret Rose Henry (D-Wilmington East) says the cost of these drugs can often keep people from the treatment they need.
“They’re not the run of the mill illnesses and it can cost thousands of dollars a month [to buy the drugs needed to treat them]. Some of the families have gone bankrupt and lost their home trying to take care of loved ones. So this is really a wonderful, wonderful piece of legislation," said Henry.
Executive Director of the Delaware Valley chapter of the National Hemophilia Foundation Ann Rogers agrees, noting that individuals and families dealing with hemophilia faced growing financial burdens.
“The average cost of hemophilia medicine per month is $40,000. So, when insurers proposed high cost sharing at 25 to 33 percent of the actual cost of the drug each month, we were panicked," said Rogers. "That would be 10 thousand dollars out of pocket each month."
The law, which goes into effect January 1st in Delaware, is the result of three years of study and negotiation between insurers, advocacy groups and others.
Rogers adds her group and others are already using the bill as a model for similar legislation in Pennsylvania.
"This model of first a study, then a recommendation and then legislation introduced to regulate this [issue] was the process used in Delaware and we found it to be a fair, transparent process that fleshed out the issue and resulted in a law that would protect families."