State Rep. Luke Meerman, of Coopersville, has introduced a bipartisan plan to improve the quality of health care in Michigan while making it more accessible and affordable.

Meerman said the plan focuses on three main goals: Lowering the cost of prescription medicine, increasing access to care, and making every level of the health-care industry step up its game and provide a higher standard of care.

Meerman’s bill in the package allows consumers to use an online or mobile platform to renew their contact prescriptions if their prescription hasn’t changed.

“Telemedicine has made great strides over the past year. Michigan patients should be allowed to conveniently renew their prescriptions without making a trip to the eye doctor,” Meerman said. “The majority of states already allow this and Michigan should join in the effort to benefit patients through the use of telemedicine.”

Among the many other proposed solutions are reforms to cap out-of-pocket costs for insulin, put a check on unregulated prescription middlemen who manipulate drug prices and pad their pockets with money instead of passing along savings to consumers, and hold drug companies accountable to the patients who are driving their record profits by requiring manufacturers to submit details on how their drugs are priced.

“People living with diabetes who desperately need insulin shouldn’t have to choose between paying their utility bills and paying for their insulin,” Meerman said. “That’s the reality we’re living in. This legislation ensures no one is put in that position moving forward.”

Another piece of the plan ensures access to life-saving treatments like oral chemotherapy. Intravenous chemotherapy drugs are typically covered under a health plan’s medical benefit, but oral drugs are usually covered under a health plan’s pharmacy benefit, resulting in higher upfront costs for patients at the counter.

Meerman says the plan ensures patients in Michigan aren’t forced to pay a higher co-pay, deductible or co-insurance to access oral chemo, which is a less invasive therapy they can use in the comfort of their own homes.

A full list of proposed reforms included in the plan is available here.