Committee hears emotional testimony on bill to ban step-therapy for insulin; bill laid over for further review

Representative Howard opened discussion on House File 743, describing scenarios in which insurance-mandated step therapy forces patients to try alternative medications before accessing prescribed insulin. Howard said the measure would ensure clinicians and patients—not insurers—have final say over insulin prescriptions.

Public testimony included Cody Holiday of the American Diabetes Association, who urged the committee to eliminate step therapy for insulin, saying it "ensures providers, not insurers, have the final say." A physician who identified themselves as a person living with type 1 diabetes described decades of managing the disease and testified that stepping through medications can be life-threatening. A high-school student with type 1 diabetes described being forced onto a different insulin during his freshman year, which led to missed school and severe blood-sugar swings.

Representatives of the Minnesota Council of Health Plans cautioned that current statute already provides an override process and asked committee members to clarify which insurance markets would be affected; they also noted the bill applies mainly to fully insured markets and not to self-insured employer plans. Members debated potential cost implications and whether the bill's protections overlap with existing law. Given these outstanding questions, the committee agreed to lay the bill over so proponents, insurers, and nonpartisan staff can reconcile fiscal and market impacts before a vote.