Prohibits healthcare insurers from requiring or conducting a review for prescription medicine used to treat alcohol or opioid use disorder containing Methadone, Burenorphine, or Naltrexone, or approved to mitigate opioid withdrawal symptoms.

## Plain-English Summary

This bill would prevent health insurance companies in Rhode Island from requiring prior authorization or other utilization reviews before covering certain medications used to treat alcohol use disorder and opioid use disorder. Specifically, it targets medications containing Methadone, Buprenorphine, or Naltrexone — which are FDA-approved treatments that help people manage addiction and reduce cravings — as well as any medications approved to ease opioid withdrawal symptoms. Currently, insurers can require patients and their doctors to go through an approval process before these medications are covered, which can cause delays in receiving treatment.

This bill would affect Rhode Islanders who struggle with opioid or alcohol addiction and rely on insurance to cover their medications. It would also affect healthcare providers who currently must spend time completing paperwork and waiting for insurer approval before prescribing these treatments. By removing the review requirement, patients could access these medications more quickly and without administrative hurdles that might otherwise discourage or delay treatment. Insurance companies operating in Rhode Island would no longer be permitted to use these review processes as a condition of coverage for the specified drugs.

The bill was introduced in the Rhode Island House of Representatives and referred to the House Health & Human Services Committee. As of early 2026, the committee has recommended holding the bill for further study, meaning it has not yet advanced through the legislative process.