More states requiring coverage of non-opioid pain medications

More states are requiring their Medicaid programs and health insurance companies to cover non-opioid pain medications as an alternative to opioids (Source: “More states are requiring insurers to cover non-opioid pain meds,” Ohio Capital Journal, Feb. 16).
 
At least eight states have enacted such laws: Arkansas, Illinois, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, Oregon and Tennessee. In states that are still considering legislation, the efforts have been bipartisan, pushed by lawmakers in Democratic-controlled states such as Colorado and New York and Republican-leaning states, including Kentucky and Missouri.
 
The issue has gained momentum in recent years, as leading medical associations such as the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine have urged providers not to prescribe opioids as the first-line treatment for pain.

Meanwhile, bipartisan legislation introduced in Congress last year aims to increase Medicaid Part D enrollees’ access to non-opioid pain medications. It’s been referred to a committee.