Optum Rx will eliminate reauthorization requirements for 40 additional medications beginning Jan. 1 as part of the company’s effort to streamline access to prescriptions.
The reductions focus on two drug classes — hormone therapy and injectables for knee osteoarthritis — and bring the total number of medications with reduced reauthorization to 180, according to a Nov. 24 news release from UnitedHealth Group, Optum Rx’s parent company. Optum Rx cut requirements for about 80 chronic disease drugs in March, followed by more than 60 additional medications in July. At the time, the company said the changes would improve access and outcomes, especially for patients with behavioral health conditions, dry eye disease, HIV and hypertension.
This initiative coincides with an expansion of PreCheck Prior Authorization, an automated tool that cuts approval time from 8.5 hours to less than 30 seconds. By Jan. 1, the platform will cover more than 45 medications and be used across 20 health systems, the release said.
