Connecticut § 38a-492i Mandatory coverage for pain management.

Connecticut Statutes

§ 38a-492i — Mandatory coverage for pain management.

Connecticut § 38a-492i

Title 38aInsurance

Ch. 700cHealth Insurance

This text of Connecticut § 38a-492i (Mandatory coverage for pain management.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Connecticut primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

Conn. Gen. Stat. § 38a-492i (2026).

Text

(a)Each individual health insurance policy providing coverage of the type specified in subdivisions (1), (2), (4), (10), (11) and (12) of section 38a-469 delivered, issued for delivery, renewed, amended or continued in this state shall provide access to a pain management specialist and coverage for pain treatment ordered by such specialist that may include all means medically necessary to make a diagnosis and develop a treatment plan including the use of necessary medications and procedures.

(b)(1) No such policy that provides coverage for prescription drugs shall require an insured to use, prior to using a brand name prescription drug prescribed by a licensed physician for pain treatment, any alternative brand name prescription drugs or over-the-counter drugs.

(2)Such policy may requir

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(a) Each individual health insurance policy providing coverage of the type specified in subdivisions (1), (2), (4), (10), (11) and (12) of section 38a-469 delivered, issued for delivery, renewed, amended or continued in this state shall provide access to a pain management specialist and coverage for pain treatment ordered by such specialist that may include all means medically necessary to make a diagnosis and develop a treatment plan including the use of necessary medications and procedures. (b) (1) No such policy that provides coverage for prescription drugs shall require an insured to use, prior to using a brand name prescription drug prescribed by a licensed physician for pain treatment, any alternative brand name prescription drugs or over-the-counter drugs. (2) Such policy may require an insured to use, prior to using a brand name prescription drug prescribed by a licensed physician for pain treatment, a therapeutically equivalent generic drug. (c) As used in this section, “pain” means a sensation in which a person experiences severe discomfort, distress or suffering due to provocation of sensory nerves, and “pain management specialist” means a physician who is credentialed by the American Academy of Pain Management or who is a board-certified anesthesiologist, physiatrist, neurologist, oncologist or radiation oncologist with additional training in pain management. See Sec. 38a-518i re group health insurance coverage for pain management.

Legislative History

(P.A. 00-216, S. 18, 28; P.A. 11-169, S. 1; P.A. 12-197, S. 20.) History: P.A. 00-216 effective January 1, 2001; P.A. 11-169 designated existing provisions as Subsecs. (a) and (c), added Subsec. (b) prohibiting insurers from requiring insured to use alternative brand name prescription drugs or over-the-counter drugs prior to using brand name prescription drug prescribed for pain treatment, and made technical changes, effective January 1, 2012; P.A. 12-197 amended Subsec. (c) by adding physiatrist to definition of “pain management specialist”, effective June 15, 2012.