AG Says Jindal Health Changes Didn’t Follow Law

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Louisiana attorney general's office says state employee health insurance changes enacted by Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration skipped required legal steps.

In an opinion released Tuesday, the attorney general's office says modifications to health care plans for state workers and retirees in the Office of Group Benefits must be made according to Louisiana's Administrative Procedures Act.

The act requires public notice, a comment period and legislative oversight.

Those provisions weren't followed when the Jindal administration made changes to insurance plans that took effect Aug. 1. Changes included medication restrictions and requiring prior authorization for certain medical procedures.

Rep. John Bel Edwards, a Democrat running for governor in 2015 and an outspoken critic of the health plan changes, requested the legal opinion. It doesn't have the force and effect of law.