44-788. Coverage for cancer, human immunodeficiency virus, or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome treatment; requirements.

(1) Notwithstanding section 44-3,131, any individual or group sickness and accident insurance policy or subscriber contract delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in this state and any hospital, medical, or surgical expense-incurred policy, except for policies that provide coverage for a specified disease or other limited-benefit coverage, and any self-funded employee benefit plan to the extent not preempted by federal law, which provides reimbursement for prescription drugs approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of a specific type of cancer shall not exclude coverage of any drug or combination of drugs on the basis that the drug or combination of drugs has not been approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of another specific type of cancer if (a) the drug or combination of drugs is recognized for treatment of the other specific type of cancer in the United States Pharmacopeia-Drug Information and the drug or combination of drugs is approved for sale by the federal Food and Drug Administration or (b) the drug or combination of drugs is recognized for treatment of the other specific type of cancer in medical literature and the drug or combination of drugs is approved for sale by the federal Food and Drug Administration.

(2) Notwithstanding section 44-3,131, any individual or group sickness and accident insurance policy or subscriber contract delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in this state and any hospital, medical, or surgical expense-incurred policy, except for policies that provide coverage for a specified disease or other limited-benefit coverage, and any self-funded employee benefit plan to the extent not preempted by federal law, which provides reimbursement for prescription drugs approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome shall not exclude coverage of any drug or combination of drugs on the basis that the drug or combination of drugs has not been approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome if (a) the drug or combination of drugs is recognized for treatment of human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome in the United States Pharmacopeia-Drug Information and the drug or combination of drugs is approved for sale by the federal Food and Drug Administration or (b) the drug or combination of drugs is recognized for treatment of human immunodeficiency virus or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome in medical literature and the drug or combination of drugs is approved for sale by the federal Food and Drug Administration.

(3) Any coverage of a drug or combination of drugs required by this section shall include medically necessary services associated with the administration of the drug if such services are covered by the insurance policy, contract, or plan.

(4) Nothing in this section shall be construed to require coverage for any experimental or investigational drug not approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration.

(5) For purposes of this section, medical literature means two articles from major peer-reviewed professional medical journals that have recognized, based on scientific or medical criteria, the safety and effectiveness of the drug or combination of drugs for treatment of the indication for which it has been prescribed unless two articles from major peer-reviewed professional medical journals have concluded, based on scientific or medical criteria, that the drug or combination of drugs is unsafe or ineffective or that the safety and effectiveness of the drug or combination of drugs cannot be determined for the treatment of the indication for which the drug or combination of drugs has been prescribed. Each article shall meet the uniform requirements for manuscripts submitted to biomedical journals established by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors or shall have been published in a journal specified by the United States Department of Health and Human Services pursuant to 42 U.S.C. 1395x(t)(2)(B), as amended, as acceptable peer-reviewed medical literature. Peer-reviewed medical literature shall not include publications or supplements that are sponsored to a significant extent by a pharmaceutical manufacturing company or health carrier.

(6) This section shall apply to policies, plans, or contracts for insurance as provided in subsections (1) and (2) of this section which are delivered, issued for delivery, or renewed in this state on or after July 15, 1998.

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