Councilmember Mary Cheh introduces Copay Accumulator Bill December 15, 2021

On December 6, Councilmember Mary Cheh introduced B24-0557, the Copay Accumulator Amendment Act. The bill was co-introduced by Councilmembers Lewis George, Nadeau, Silverman, and Gray.

The bill would amend the Specialty Drug Copayment Limitation Act to require health insurers to apply discounts, financial assistance, payments, product vouchers, and other reductions in out-of-pocket expenses made by or on behalf of a member when calculating a member's coinsurance, copayment, cost-sharing responsibility, deductible, or out-of-pocket maximum for a covered benefit.

B24-0557 is a one of MSDC's top legislative priorities and an issue the Society has worked on since last year. As insurers continue to cost shift to patients, the Society is concerned our patients will face financial hardships in paying for prescriptions, especially prescriptions for more costly drugs or conditions. As Councilmember Cheh notes in her introduction:

When consumers are unable to afford health care, primarily costly prescription drugs, they are often forced to ration the medication or forgo use altogether, leading to worse healthcare outcomes, and even risk of advance disease or death.

MSDC thanks Councilmember Cheh and the co-introducers for putting forward this bill. We look forward to testifying at a future Committee on Health hearing and helping pass the legislation so DC can join more than ten states in protecting patients on this issue.