State Leaders Announce Bipartisan Health Care Reforms: Prescription Drugs Assistance, Health Savings Account Act Included in Plan

State Republican and Democrat leaders today announced a bipartisan health care reform plan, including a new system for prescription drugs assistance and model legislation to make health care more affordable using health savings accounts.

“I believe our Smart Card initiative and the expansion of the Prescription Assistance program will help lower drug costs for many Oklahomans, particularly senior citizens, and I commend legislative leaders of both parties for their hard work on this important issue,” said Gov. Henry. “In the months to come, I will keep fighting to lower drug costs, but I am pleased by the progress made this legislative session. These efforts will provide great assistance to Oklahomans who have been struggling to cope with the skyrocketing cost of prescription drugs.”

“These measures will help those in need, by making prescription drugs more affordable. We’ll also empower individuals to control their own health care,” said Speaker Todd Hiett (R-Kellyville). “This bipartisan slate of initiatives gives hardworking families the help they need, while offering fundamental changes to our system.”

“The cost of prescription drugs and health care, in general, are among the biggest challenges many Oklahoma families face on a daily basis. Oklahoma will never become a healthier state if hundreds of thousands of our citizens don’t have access to affordable health care. These bi-partisan initiatives will help ease the financial burden for many of those people,” said Senate President Pro Tempore Mike Morgan (D-Stillwater).

In addition to the agreement on prescription drugs assistance and health savings accounts, the bipartisan plan includes provisions to boost clinicians in rural areas and to offer increased protections for the residents of long-term care facilities.

Under the agreement, the state will adopt an Oklahoma Smart Card system that would help citizens take advantage of existing discounts offered by pharmaceutical companies and pharmacies.

Oklahoma will also implement a new Rx for Oklahoma program statewide – increasing access to prescription drugs for the uninsured, low income Oklahomans and senior citizens through a public-private partnership. Combined, officials said the Smart Card system and the Rx for Oklahoma program will assist all lower-income and disadvantaged Oklahomans in accessing prescription drugs.

Based on the successful Prescription Assistance program in Norman, the Rx for Oklahoma Act will provide funding to the state Department of Commerce to establish various access points for the expanded program, including community action agencies, county offices of the state Department of Human Services, and county health departments.

Speaker Hiett commended Rep. Kris Steele, chair of the House Health and Human Resources Committee, for his leadership in crafting the bipartisan plan.

“Representative Steele took the lead in proposing and hammering out details on major health care reforms that will help Oklahomans for years to come, including the Rx for Oklahoma program, health savings accounts and the Long-term Care Security Act,” said Hiett. “And Representative Doug Cox, a doctor, introduced an important plan that will assist rural communities.”

Morgan commended the work of freshman Senators Tom Adelson and Susan Paddack for their willingness to push through legislation that will improve the health of Oklahomans.

“Senators Paddack and Adelson understand that creating a healthier Oklahoma will help make a better tomorrow for our children,” Morgan said.

Provisions of the agreement include:

* Health Savings Account Act

The bipartisan agreement also encompasses the Health Savings Account Act, a measure to allow individuals (or employers on behalf of their employees) who purchase a high deductible insurance policy to deposit and expend cash free from Oklahoma income tax for qualified medical expenses. The amount that may be contributed and spent is the lower of 100 percent of the deductible (which must be at least $1,000 for individuals and $2,000 for families) or $2,600 for an individual or $5,150 for a family.

* More Physician Assistants in Rural Areas

The agreement spells out a measure that provides more clinicians for rural communities. Rural areas of Oklahoma face a continuing health care personnel shortage – with fewer doctors and other clinicians available each year. The new measure requires the Physician Manpower Training Commission to expand the benefits for its Rural Medical Education Loan and Scholarship program to students preparing to become Physician Assistants. Right now, the program only applies to students preparing to become physicians. The loan program provides qualified individuals with demonstrated financial need who commit to practice their profession in a rural town one year’s scholarship (up to $15,000) for each year they practice in the rural area. They must practice for at least two years.

* Long-Term Care Security Act

Finally, the slate of bipartisan measures includes the Long-term Care Security Act, a new law that would require criminal background checks for all employees of long-term care facilities in Oklahoma. The measure also mandates that the state Department of Corrections must notify any long-term care facility in the state, in addition to local law enforcement officials, if any registered sex offenders are living in that facility.