Bills to Increase Access to Insulin, Address Opioid Crisis Clear Committee!

DENVER, CO – Today, the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee approved legislation to ensure that all Coloradans who need it have access to affordable insulin – a life-saving policy in response to egregious price hikes perpetrated by big pharma. The Committee also approved legislation yesterday to require that insurance companies provide coverage for opioid alternatives. 

HB21-1307, sponsored by Senator Kerry Donovan, increases access to insulin by clarifying that the current $100 cap on a person’s monthly insulin supply applies regardless of the number of prescriptions a person may have. Furthermore, it allows eligible consumers to access one emergency prescription insulin supply for no more than $35 per 12-month period. 

“In Colorado, 40% of patients report having to ration their insulin,” said Senator Kerry Donovan (D-Vail). “This bill builds upon the work that we did in 2019, when we passed legislation capping the price of insulin in Colorado at $100. We can take this next critical step by ensuring that uninsured and underinsured Coloradans have access to the medication that they need at a price they can afford.”

The bill also creates the Insulin Affordability Program in the Division of Insurance to help eligible individuals obtain prescription insulin for $50 a month for 12 months. The findings of an investigation conducted by the Colorado Attorney General’s office released in November 2020, found that over 40% of Coloradans using insulin rationed their medicine due to cost and that over 37% use expired insulin to stretch their supplies due to high costs.

HB21-1276, sponsored by Senator Brittany Pettersen, passed through committee yesterday. This bill requires a health benefit plan to provide coverage for non-pharmacological treatment as an alternative to opioids. It also seeks to limit the supply of benzodiazepines, sedatives commonly prescribed for anxiety and as a sleep aid. Further, the legislation aims to improve education around prescribing benzodiazepines and the potential harm of inappropriately limiting prescriptions to chronic pain patients. 

“The culture of overprescribing opioids has created a public health crisis that has resulted in widespread exposure to highly addictive narcotics for far too many Coloradans,” said Senator Brittany Pettersen (D-Lakewood). “If we truly want to prevent substance use disorders in our state, we need to limit over-prescribing while covering alternative treatments so patients are able to treat their pain without taking an addictive pill. And that’s exactly what this bill seeks to do.” 

HB21-1307 will now head to the Committee of the Whole, while HB21-1276 will be heard by Senate Appropriations. You can track the progress of the legislation by visiting leg.colorado.gov.