{"data":{"id":"us-ct/conn.-gen.-stat.-38a-518i","jurisdiction":"us-ct","citation":"Conn. Gen. Stat. § 38a-518i","heading":"Mandatory coverage for pain management.","body":"(a) Each group 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.\n(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.\n(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.\n(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.","path":["TITLE 38a. INSURANCE","CHAPTER 700c. HEALTH INSURANCE","PART III. GROUP HEALTH INSURANCE"],"source_url":"https://www.cga.ct.gov/current/pub/chap_700c.htm#sec_38a-518i","current_through":"Revised to January 1, 2026 (2026 Supplement to the General Statutes of Connecticut, applied over the base revision of January 1, 2025)","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-06T19:07:12Z","sha256":"7ab384d2ec36ceed6f0de4d9ed517ee6ac55a0856f8f0e320143b9e3207a55ec","source_id":"us-ct","stale":false,"prev":"us-ct/conn.-gen.-stat.-38a-518h","next":"us-ct/conn.-gen.-stat.-38a-518j"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}