State officials are proposing revisions to Delaware's insurance code to ensure that people struggling with opioid addiction get the treatment they need.
Attorney General Matt Denn on Wednesday also called for the creation of a new oversight committee to help identify and target medical providers who are overprescribing prescription painkillers.
One bill requires insurers to provide at least 14 days of coverage for medically necessary inpatient treatment for substance abuse, without requiring prescreening, referrals or prior authorization.
"In other words, it ensures the patient gets in the front door," Denn said.
Another bill would allow the attorney general's office to use consumer protection funds to provide legal assistance to people challenging claim denials.
"Treatment works and recovery is possible, but we have to make treatment available for people," said Delaware Public Health Director Dr. Karyl Rattay. "Insurance coverage is critically important."
Insurance Commissioner Trinidad Navarro also expressed support for the package of bipartisan legislation, saying insurance companies need to pay for substance abuse treatment, just as they cover treatment for other medical conditions.
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"It comes down to pay now, or pay later," said Navarro, suggesting that efforts to avoid paying for inpatient or residential treatment, often results in people struggling with addiction to relapse, prolonging their struggle and often resulting in the need for more intensive treatment.
Matt Guthrie, 28, of Wilmington recounted how he first sought treatment for his drug abuse problem in 2007, but wasn't able to get the help he needed, including detox and inpatient treatment, until 2011.
"In 2007, the treatment facility told me I wasn't sick enough yet," he said.
Denn noted that Delaware's drug overdose rate was the 12th-highest in the country in 2015.
"Since then, our death rate has spiraled even more, thanks in large part to the emergence of fentanyl," he said.
According to Denn, 228 Delawareans died of overdoses in 2015, up from 224 in 2014. Last year, he said, Delaware recorded 308 overdose deaths, an increase of 38 percent.
"Behind those staggering numbers are real people," he said.
In addition to insurance reforms aimed at better treatment, Denn also is proposing a new advisory committee to help oversee Delaware's prescription drug database.
Using a formula developed with the committee, the Office of Controlled Substances, which oversees Delaware's Prescription Monitoring Program, will provide the committee with data on doctors with unusual opiate prescription patterns.
The committee would review the data for possible referrals to licensing or law enforcement authorities. The committee would have authority to make direct referrals to licensing authorities, but any referrals to law enforcement would be made by professional staff.
"We need to get a better handle on the prescription of opiate drugs in this state," said Denn, adding that a handful of providers are prescribing an "enormous percentage" of opiates, which he said are a gateway to heroin and fentanyl.
