This bill proposes to amend the Arizona Revised Statutes by adding a new section, 36-2930.07, which mandates that the Arizona health care cost containment system must not favor opioid or narcotic drugs over nonopioid drugs that are FDA-approved for pain management. Specifically, it ensures that nonopioid drugs are treated equally in terms of coverage on the system's drug formulary.

The bill defines "treated less favorably" to include two specific scenarios: first, if a nonopioid drug is classified as a nonpreferred drug while an opioid or narcotic is preferred; and second, if there are more stringent utilization controls for nonopioid drugs compared to those for opioids or narcotics, such as prior authorization and step therapy requirements. This update aims to promote the use of nonopioid pain management options within the healthcare system.

Statutes affected:
Introduced Version: 36-2930.07