Prior authorization is a check done by insurance companies and other third-party payers to determine whether or not they should pay for a medical procedure or specific medication. Factors that can trigger prior authorization requests include things like age, the availability of alternative medicines, or the need to check for drug interactions. If they reject the prior authorization, payers often require doctors to attempt the insurance company's preferred procedure and verify unsuccessful results before accepting an alternative treatment plan. Pre-authorization requests can take up to 30 days, though insurance companies and healthcare providers are continuing to work on ways to cut this time down.