BOSTON, Mass. - New legislation in Massachusetts could bring some much-needed assistance to those battling substance use disorder.

The bill was recently signed by Gov. Maura Healey, and among other new measures, it requires insurance companies to cover opioid reversal drugs like Narcan, and life insurance companies can no longer limit or refuse coverage solely because someone obtained those drugs in the past.

State Sen. Jo Comerford believes the bill will go a long way in easing the burden for those looking to move past their addiction.

“It's largely a harm reduction bill, and it really meets people where they are in their own recovery with science-based, proven methods in the harm reduction space of helping people in their recovery journey by breaking down barriers that have been facing them for far too long,” Comerford said.

Comerford introduced the legislation and focused her efforts largely on the bill’s changes to reporting requirements for substance-exposed newborns so these cases are no longer an automatic referral to the Department of Children and Families. She said it will ensure women taking opioid use disorder treatment medication can continue doing so.

“If a newborn is born substance-exposed and that substance is, say, for example, methadone, which is prescribed by a doctor to help someone continue in their recovery, that should not be an automatic trigger asking DCF to engage, because that itself is a barrier to individuals who are pregnant seeking care,” Comerford said. “It has to be much more nuanced, and having addiction treatment in an infant’s blood is not necessarily a sign of abuse or neglect, there have to be other triggers.”

The bill will also require insurance coverage for recovery coaches, and creates a system for licensing recovery coaches with the Department of Public Health to ensure they’re properly qualified.

More information on other new measures included in the bill can be found on the Massachusetts Legislature’s website.