The bill aims to reduce prescription drug costs by enhancing access to biosimilar medicines, which are approved under the same FDA standards as their reference drugs. It introduces a new section that emphasizes the importance of eliminating barriers to accessing these cost-effective alternatives. The bill amends several existing laws, including RCW 48.43.420, to ensure that health plans provide a clear and accessible process for patients and healthcare providers to request exceptions to prescription drug utilization management. This includes requirements for health carriers to disclose criteria for exception requests and mandates timely responses to these requests.

Additionally, the bill modifies RCW 69.41.120 and RCW 69.41.125 to allow pharmacists to select biosimilars or interchangeable biological products when filling prescriptions, provided that the substitution does not conflict with the prescriber's instructions. It also stipulates that the substitution should aim to lower the patient's out-of-pocket costs. The amendments include the requirement for pharmacists to communicate the dispensed drug product to patients and retain records of the dispensed product. Overall, the bill seeks to promote the use of biosimilars, thereby potentially lowering prescription drug costs for patients.

Statutes affected:
Original Bill: 48.43.420, 41.05.410, 69.41.120, 18.64.245