In response to the Autism Speaks/Pennsylvania Autism Insurance Bill fiasco - the following email was sent from PA Speaker O’Brien.

AN OPEN LETTER TO AUTISM SPEAKS FROM SPEAKER O’BRIEN
July 12, 2008

Mr. Robert C. Wright
Co-Founder, Autism Speaks
2 Park Avenue
11th Floor
New York, NY 10016

Dear Bob:

We have a collective mission to create a world in which persons with autism have every opportunity to participate fully in society, to live meaningful and independent lives, to receive the respect they deserve and to have the supports necessary for them to reach the innate potential we know them to have. It’s never been an easy mission, and it doesn’t often permit us the luxury of a pause in the action to reflect on success.
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The News-Press is reporting that a bill in the Florida legislature is being reviewed that would provide enhanced funding to Florida children with autism. Parents in Florida are pushing for mandated autism coverage by insurance companies (like the parents who helped push through the Arizona autism insurance bill) and while this isn’t the inclusive plan that parents had hoped for, it is a step in the right direction.

From the News-Press article:

The proposed bill removes caps on full-pay KidCare participants so that any Florida family can buy health insurance that includes coverage for enhanced services for children with autism and other developmental disabilities. It also expands KidCare benefits to include physical, speech and occupational therapy — and expands the age eligibility — so that younger children can get enhanced benefits.

Read the entire article here: New Florida Package Proposed to Enhance Coverage for Children with Autism

On February 14, Autism News Direct reported that the Arizona Autism Insurance Billhad passed its first hurdle by making it out of committee.  I am happy to report that as of this week, a little over 30 days from moving out of committee, the Arizona Autism Insurance Bill has been passed and signed into law by Governor Janet Napolitano.  This piece of legislation did not have its adversaries.  Insurance companies, small business owners, corporations, and even the Arizona Chamber of Commerce opposed the initial wording of the bill.  The claims were made that insurance premiums would increase across the state if this legislation were to be enacted and that some companies would no longer be able to offer insurance coverage as a result of the bill. 

There are some specific mandates that were written into the bill.  These include a limit of the requirement to employer-purchased plans in firms with more than 50 employees, a cap of $50,000 per year for children through age eight and a cap of $25,000 per year for children aged nine through 16.  An important part of this legislation is that it will cover children with Asperger’s Syndrome and PDD-NOS in addition to autistic disorder.  Currently, the State of Arizona’s Department of Developmental Disabilities provides no funding for children with Asperger’s Syndrome and PDD-NOS leaving their parents to foot the hefty bills for therapy and other interventions.

Wisconsin Senators are set to vote on a bill that would require mandated insurance coverage for autism spectrum disorders, including Asperger’s Syndrome and PDD-NOS.  The Senate will be voting on Tuesday, February 26, 2008.  There are some interesting requirements listed in the bill; per an article appearing in the Sunday edition of The Journal Times Online:

According to Senate Bill 178, the treatment must be provided by a psychiatrist, a psychologist, a social worker who is certified or licensed to practice psychotherapy, a paraprofessional working under the supervision of any of those three types of providers, or a professional working under the supervision of an outpatient mental health clinic.

Only a handful of states currently require this mandated insurance coverage of autism spectrum disorders.  Arizona is working on an autism insurance bill and parents in Florida are starting to drum up support for similar legislation.

Source: The Journal Times Online

Parents and professionals working with children and adults on the autism spectrum are looking for a mandate requiring insurance companies to provide coverage for autism spectrum disorders.  With recent news of success in Arizona, Arizona Autism Insurance Bill Passes First Hurdle, the grassroots effort in Florida may find much-needed media recognition for their efforts.

Laura O’Sullivan has recently opened an autism treatment center, Children’s Autism Treatment Specialists, where she provides clients with ABA therapy.  Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) is an industry-standard therapy to help treat symptoms associated with the autism spectrum.  However, the services are pricey and currently ony individuals with adequate private income or those on Medicaid are able to receive these highly-studied interventions.  According to an article in the News-Press’ online edition:

Most insurance companies, according to O’Sullivan and autism advocacy groups, won’t cover therapies related to autism, a developmental delay that, by one estimate, strikes one in 150 children.

Source:  The News-Press

Parents, caregivers, and autism support organizations in Arizona are working with the state legislature to get a bill passed that would require insurance companies to provide coverage for therapies and other treatments related to an individual’s autism spectrum disorder diagnosis.  Currently insurance companies in Arizona are not required to provide this coverage and many do not.  Instead, insurance companies consider this an educational need and push it on to the school districts.  In other cases, children only receive coverage after going on the state’s welfare health insurance program.

SB1263 passed with unanimous approval out of the Arizona Senate’s Health Committee, the next step is to get the proposal through the Appropriation’s Committee and on to the Senate floor for a vote.  For more information on the history of the bill and to provide support, visit the Arizona Autism Insurance Bill website.