HURST, Texas – State Sen. Kelly Hancock (R-North Richland Hills) on Thursday received the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network’s Advocacy in Action Award in recognition of his leadership to ensure Texans facing cancer do not also face health risks associated with step therapy, also known as “fail first” therapy.
As the Senate Busine
ss and Commerce Committee Chair, Sen. Hancock authored Senate Bill 680, which established exceptions to insurance step therapy requirements. The bill was passed during the 2017 Legislature and went into effect Sept. 1, 2017.
The law places limits on step therapy policies used by insurance companies that require patients to try less expensive, potentially less effective drugs before they can get coverage for the prescriptions their physicians recommend. The new law limits the use of these “fail first” policies, and allows cancer patients to more easily appeal if their coverage is denied.
“Health care providers know what’s best for their patients, and that’s why the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network and our volunteers fought hard in Austin for this law to come to life,” said ACS CAN Texas Government Relations Director Cam Scott. “We are grateful for Sen. Hancock’s leadership to ensure Texans with cancer can access the latest innovations in treatment.”
Step therapy practices can cause adverse reactions, debilitating side effects and unnecessary hospitalizations. For cancer patients and other Texans living with life-threatening conditions, these practices waste precious time and can lead to potentially deadly disease progression. And in instances when step therapy practices are unavoidable, it’s important that appropriate patient protections are in place.
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