Starting next year in Florida, health insurer Cigna will lower the out-of-pocket costs for certain HIV meds, The New York Times reports. For example, people enrolled in Cigna will not pay more than $200 a month for commonly prescribed drugs including Atripla, Complera, Stribild and Fuzeon. However, some drugs, such as Truvada, were not included in the new agreement.
The changes come after the AIDS Institute and the National Health Law Program filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights, stating that insurers in Florida discriminated against HIV-positive people by putting restrictions on the meds they needed. The two groups said the Florida case could set an example for the rest of the country. The complaint also included insurers ConventryOne, Humana and Preferred Medical Plan.
Cigna reached a settlement with Florida’s Office of Insurance Regulation but did not admit to any wrongdoing. The federal Office of Civil Rights is still looking into the case.
As part of the agreement, Cigna will also move all generic HIV medications from an expensive “specialty” category to a less-costly tier. In addition, it will no longer require prior authorizations or enforce a 30-day supply limit for meds.
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