Policy Resources

2023 Advocacy State Fact Sheets

Have you or someone you love been forced to endure excessive pain due to step therapy? Our survey of 1,400 patients found that over 50 percent of patients reported having to try two or more drugs prior to getting the one their doctor originally recommended.

Many patients seeking medication vital to their arthritis treatment are held up by prior authorization, a process in which a physician must submit tedious paperwork before writing a prescription. Find out what can be done to simplify this process.

Learn more about our advocacy position on the issue of out of pocket costs, including the current survey data trends, the solutions we endorse and current legislative trends.

Many arthritis patients use co-pay assistance, such as co-pay cards or manufacturer coupons, to pay for their life-saving medications. Co-pay accumulator programs prevent such assistance from counting towards patient cost-sharing, such as their deductible or annual out-of-pocket maximum. As a result, patients may struggle to afford and adhere to their medications as insurers and PBMs seek to shift more cost-sharing responsibility to patients.

There is a critical shortage of pediatric rheumatologists in the U.S., with only 420 board-certified and practicing physicians to treat young people with arthritis. Learn more about the work we do to increase access to care for JA patients.

Learn more about why we advocate for individual health insurance market stabilization, including the solutions we endorse and current legislative trends.

Getting proper arthritis treatment through an insurance provider can be difficult due to prior authorization, cost sharing and step therapy requirements. Find out why insurance plan transparency is so critical to arthritis patients.

Each year thousands of patients seeking treatment for arthritis are met with unexpectedly large medical bills, due to confusing relationships between insurance providers, health care providers and health care facilities. Learn more about surprise billing here.

Learn more about our advocacy position on the issue of mid-year insurance plan changes, including the solutions we endorse and current legislative trends.

Learn more about our advocacy position on the issue of network adequacy, including what it is, the solutions we endorse and current legislative trends.

As the largest organization representing the voice and needs of people with arthritis, the Arthritis Foundation has always welcomed new treatment options, such as CBD, because no single drug, supplement or therapy works for everyone.

With the commencement of the 118th Congress, we have an updated set of advocacy priorities.