The Pennsylvania House Labor and Industry Committee scheduled House Bill No. 18 for a vote at the upcoming meeting on Tuesday, June 13, 2017. House Bill No. 18, introduced on February 13, 2017, seeks to amend the Pennsylvania Workers' Compensation Act by adding a provision to Section 306(f.1) (3)(vi) addressing the payment of prescription drugs. The provision will permit the Department of Labor and Industry to select a nationally recognized evidence-based prescription drug formulary.
The sponsors of the bill believe that the legislation will significantly affect the medical costs associated with workers' compensation claims. This amendment, riding on the wave of the nationally recognized opioid epidemic, seeks to resolve issues of drugs being prescribed for work-related treatment by establishing specific guidelines for the dosages and durations of medications, including narcotics and compound creams. If a particular prescription drug fails to comply with the accepted drug formulary, the medication will be considered per se unreasonable and unnecessary.
We encourage you to review the Committee's roster and contact your state representative to investigate House Bill No. 18.