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Last year, lawmakers in the tri-state area focused on expanding access to maternal and child health assistance, strengthening consumer protections against medical debt, and increasing access to mental health in schools.
Here are some new health care laws coming into effect in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and Delaware in 2025.
pennsylvania
safe haven law
By January 1, urgent care centers and health care providers will be included in the state’s list of health care providers. safe evacuation methodsThis allows people to hand over their newborn children to public security authorities or medical personnel without penalty.
If you feel like you can’t care for your baby right after giving birth or don’t know where to go for help, you can leave your child with us. with emergency services experts At police stations, EMS outposts, fire stations, hospitals, etc.
As long as the baby is within 28 days of birth and intact, the person who surrenders it will not be held criminally liable.
Medicaid coverage for doula care
Starting in early 2025, care will include: doula During pregnancy and postpartum period, eligible for Medicaidalso known as the public health insurance program for low-income people. medical aid in Pennsylvania.
The new Medicaid coverage will apply more broadly to doulas, who act as non-clinical professionals who provide support services, guidance, and education to mothers and families before, during, and after birth.
This coverage was expanded under legislation that went into effect in early 2024 and allowed doulas to work with certain organizations that oversee Medicaid services for the first time.
Biomarker cancer test
All state-regulated health insurance plans, including Medicaid, must provide coverage. Biomarker testing As of January 1st, I have been diagnosed with cancer.
Biomarker tests test samples of tissue, blood, and other body fluids for specific genes, proteins, and other substances that can give health care providers more information about a patient’s cancer.
Healthcare providers consider these biomarkers, or tumor markers, when developing a personalized treatment plan for a patient.
Treatments based on biomarker tests may lead to better outcomes, but the tests are not always covered by insurance plans and can have high out-of-pocket costs.
That’s why advocates like Donna Greco, Pennsylvania government communications director for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, have been fighting to make biomarker testing a covered benefit in insurance plans.
“Biomarker testing can be extremely helpful in matching patients to the right treatment at the right time,” Greco said. “They no longer have to go through difficult and ineffective treatments.”
The new law requires insurance plans to cover biomarker testing if a doctor or health care provider determines it is medically necessary and beneficial to a patient’s treatment plan.
Some cancers do not have known biomarkers or tumor markers, so in those cases this type of testing may not be necessary or helpful.
Biomarker testing will be added as a covered medical service, but it won’t eliminate all costs, Greco said. Patients may be required to pay deductibles, co-payments, and other cost-sharing costs, depending on their particular state, public insurance, or employer-sponsored insurance plan.
Currently, most biomarker tests are applied to cancer and related treatments, but Greco says the new law will also allow biomarker tests for other diseases such as sickle cell, rheumatoid arthritis and Alzheimer’s disease to be applied in the future. He said there remains a possibility.
“[The law] This will certainly provide additional hope for survival and a better quality of life for Pennsylvanians seeking care and treatment and surviving cancer and other illnesses,” Greco said.
