From WisPolitics.com/WisBusiness.com …
— Attorney General Josh Kaul today announced Wisconsin would get $80.1 million over 15 years under a proposed $7.4 billion multi-state settlement with Purdue Pharma and its owners.
Kaul and 54 other AGs say they plan to proceed with the proposed settlement agreement with the company and the Sackler family, related to their “alleged role” in the nationwide opioid epidemic. Today’s release from the state Department of Justice notes the settlement has not yet been finalized.
“While important progress is being made, there’s still a long way to go in the fight against the opioid epidemic,” said Kaul. “This resolution would mean more resources for efforts to combat this crisis.”
The announcement references the company’s activities to produce and aggressively market opioid products for decades, “fueling the largest drug crisis” in U.S. history under the ownership of the Sackler family. DOJ says the settlement would end the family’s control of the company and their ability to sell opioids in the United States.
Under the settlement, just over half of the funds would be distributed in the first three years, according to DOJ. While the Sacklers would pay $1.5 billion, Purdue would pay about $900 million in the first payment, $500 million after one year, another $500 million after two years and then $400 million after three years, the release shows.
Wisconsin and local governments in the state have now gotten settlements committing more than $861 million in funding from companies and people that allegedly played a role in the opioid crisis, including this new settlement.
See the release below.
— Circulating legislation would prevent health insurers from requiring care providers to accept reimbursement through “virtual credit card payments,” a financial tool used for business-to-business payments.
Sen. Rachael Cabral-Guevara, R-Appleton, and Rep. Clint Moses, R-Menomonie, recently sent a cosponsorship memo to other lawmakers seeking support for the bill.
They note some health insurance companies are now requiring health care providers to accept virtual credit card payments. The bill defines this as an electronic funds transfer where an insurer issues a single-use series of numbers associated with a payment that can be charged to a specified dollar amount, and then expire after the payment.
While this tool can provide better security for some transactions, bill authors note the payments often include a “significant” transaction fee, up to 5% in some cases. They argue this is harming small business health care providers and making care more expensive for patients.
“Efficiencies gained by an insurance company should not come at the expense of patients,” they wrote in the memo. “Adding an extra expense in the form of transaction fees does not lower health care costs. Providers can best serve patients when they have options on how to accept payment, with or without fees that all parties can knowingly agree to from the outset.”
While the bill would bar insurance companies from requiring this payment system as the only option, it doesn’t prohibit it entirely. It would require that providers be informed about and given options for other payment options, the memo notes.
Under the bill, insurers wouldn’t be able to charge a fee “solely for the transmission” of electronic funds unless the provider has consented to the fee, along with other standard payment requirements.
The memo also notes 28 states have passed laws to keep insurers from requiring fee-based credit card payments as the only method for reimbursing providers.
The cosponsorship memo is 5 p.m. Friday.
See the memo.
— U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin and Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin are warning the federal budget bill that recently cleared the House would have dangerous consequences for health care access in the state.
The Madison Dem argues Republicans’ plan would “rip away” care from working Wisconsinites while benefitting wealthy people.
“Every Wisconsinite deserves access to quality care at a price they can afford,” Baldwin said in a statement. “Republicans’ plan would put that goal further out of reach, gutting essential health services that our neighbors rely on to pay for tax breaks for billionaires and big corporations.”
PPWI and Baldwin recently held a virtual briefing as part of a broader effort aimed at “warning Wisconsinites of what is at stake” if the federal legislation passes. A recent release from the group noted the bill would block Medicaid reimbursement to Planned Parenthood centers.
Tanya Atkinson, president and CEO of PPWI, argues the legislation would “devastate access to essential health care” for more than 50,000 state residents.
“We would be forced to close health centers, lay off dedicated staff, and turn away patients who rely on us for cancer screenings, STI testing, birth control, and more,” she said.
See more in the release below.
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