VIAGRA: Aetna Says No To Coverage
Aetna U.S. Healthcare "confirmed" yesterday that it will exclude Viagra from its regular prescription-drug coverage, "but will let employers buy special coverage ... and choose how many pills a month they want covered." The Hartford Courant reports that Aetna's decision comes just a week after the insurer "took the same stand in New York." Aetna spokesperson Jill Griffiths said, "The policy recognizes that the ultimate decision on coverage and the extent of coverage should be left to the organization paying the bill, which is the employer" (Levick, 6/23).
According to an Aetna spokesperson, the option for employers to pay extra for Viagra will be modeled on the company's birth control coverage option (Wall Street Journal, 6/23). Aetna "has filed Viagra riders in many states for regulators' approval so the coverage can be added to basic health insurance policies." These riders "would be similar to add-on coverage for birth control pills."
The Courant notes that two other health plans -- Physicians Health Services and M.D. Health Plan -- "expect to start covering Viagra July 1." The plans will cover "as many as four pills a month per member for men with erectile dysfunction stemming from a physical cause" (6/23).