State News

Texas has created a Wholesale Prescription Drug Importation Program, reports the Texas
Tribune. Under House Bill 25, the state can contract with Canadian drug wholesalers to import
prescription drugs to Texans at lower prices than U.S. wholesalers. Although the law goes into
effect September 1, the federal government has yet to approve and implement the programs
that will allow importation—it is unclear when or if the state will be able to import any
prescription drugs.

Telehealth appointments, costs, ER visits and hospitalizations among privately insured patients
increased significantly in Connecticut from 2020-2022, reports the CT Mirror. The study did not
determine whether these increases were necessary or unnecessary, or whether there was a
causal relationship between telehealth services and the measured results. However, the
research did find that greater racial and ethnic diversity in an area was correlated with a higher
average number of ER visits and hospitalizations among patients who use telehealth and those
who do not use it, indicating a need for greater efforts to diminish health inequities in the state.

The Oregon Health Authority’s updated dashboard shows that private insurers pay a wide range
of amounts for the same procedures to different hospitals across the state, reports The Lund
Report. The dashboard, which covers 120 procedures, shows that even the same hospitals
received varying amounts from insurers for performing the same medical operations. Advocates
state that consumers could use the dashboard to consider which health insurance plans to buy
and to select a hospital when planning to have a certain procedure.

Connecticut's Black population has a higher mortality rate than its white population, reports
WSHU. The report found that Black infants are three times more likely to die than white infants
in the state. Furthermore, between 2017 and 2022, Black residents were much more likely to die
from preventable illnesses like COVID-19, kidney disease, and heart disease. The report
suggests that discrimination in health care settings, poor housing, financial and food insecurity,
and other upstream factors contribute to higher mortality rates among Black residents.

Approximately two million unnecessary health care services were delivered in Colorado in 2021,
leading to $134 million in costs, reports Health Payer Intelligence. The top five low-value
services provided were opioid prescriptions, Vitamin D deficiency screening, prostate cancer
screening, imaging tests for eye disease, and coronary angiographies; these services combined
contributed almost two-thirds of Colorado’s low-value care spending (63%). Commercial health
plans were most likely to spend on low-value health services.

Michigan will allow pregnant women and children with green cards to access state-sponsored
insurance without a 5-year wait, reports CBS Detroit. Pregnant women and children with green
cards will now be able to access Medicaid as well as ACA Marketplace subsidies. The change
is slated to start October 1, 2023, and will impact roughly 3,000 people in Michigan.

The Massachusetts Health Connector approved a two-year pilot program expanding income
eligibility limits to 500 percent of the federal poverty level, up from 300 percent, according to the
Massachusetts Health Connector. This expansion is estimated to impact over 50,000 people.
This change comes after the 2024 state budget was signed, which included the income limit
expansion and requiring all Marketplace carriers to participate in the program.

Pennsylvania survey respondents support government interventions in prescription drug pricing,
according to Families USA. The survey found that 87 percent of respondents support the
Pennsylvania state government making prescription drugs more affordable, and 83 percent of
all respondents supporting the creation of a Prescription Drug Affordability Board, including 75
percent of Republicans. 94 percent of Democrats, and 70 percent of unaffiliated respondents.

Illinois has passed hospital antitrust legislation monitoring mergers and acquisitions, according
to Becker's ASC Review. Health care providers will now be required to notify the state attorney
general of proposed mergers acquisitions or contracting affiliations. Notification of such
transactions is one tool states can use to monitor and highlight mergers and acquisitions that
may result in increased prices for patients. Failing to provide proper notice will result in a penalty
of up to $500 per day.