Beginning August 1, both Medicaid and private insurers in Louisiana will be required to cover for the care or treatment of menopause and peri-menopause. That's thanks to a new law, which had been known as House Bill No. 392 and is now known as Act 784. Governor Jeff Landry let the measure go into effect after legislative approval during this year's session.
As the Louisiana Radio Network reports, Democratic Representative Aimee Freeman (D-New Orleans) explained that “physicians asked her to sponsor the bill because even though many of the medications they prescribe are generic they were often rejected by Medicaid.”
Freeman said insurers opposed this new law. “They had some arguments with me, they’re like ‘Oh, we already cover this.’ And I go, ‘well okay, if you already cover this, then you shouldn’t mind.’ So that was the only pushback I got. My colleagues were helpful all along the way.”
On May 31, the Louisiana Legislative Fiscal Office reported that Information provided by the Office of Group Benefits (OGB) indicated all five of their self-funded health plans already provide coverage for medically necessary perimenopausal and menopausal care. However, a provision of this measure removes the requirement for prior authorization, step therapy or fail first policy or protocols for treatment(s).
Freeman says there’s been more research on how to treat menopausal side effects and women deserve to have that coverage.
