Press Release: Parity Organizing Meetings
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PRESS RELEASE
PA: Parity Organizing Meetings
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The Amputee Coalition of America (ACA) invites you to a series of community information and
organizing meetings to discuss prosthetic parity in Pennsylvania!
Join the ACA and the American Disability Coalition (ADC) in a meeting to discuss pushing for prosthetic coverage in the Pennsylvania state legislature!
Pennsylvania Prosthetic Parity Organizing Meetings
Central Pennsylvania/Middletown
Philadelphia
Northeast/Nanticoke
PARITY INFO
Prosthetic Coverage is Good Medicine for Working Families
How will the bill change the law? It requires group health insurance to provide coverage for prosthetics equal to the Medicare benefit level.
What will it cost the average privately insured individual? CO was the first state to pass parity legislation. A report examining prosthetic provision in found that the cost would be .0008% or 12-cents per person per month.
What will this bill do? v It will ensure that insured, working people can continue working and supporting their families. v It will ensure that the tragedy of a child losing a limb is not compounded by forcing that child to spend the rest of their childhood in a wheelchair when help is readily available. v It will ensure that taxpayers do not get stuck with the bill for health care that should be provided by a private health insurance company.
Why was the Medicare benefit level chosen as the standard of care? The Medicare coverage is a careful balance of cost and an appropriate level of benefits.
Who currently provides coverage for prosthetic devices? Automobile Insurance, Workmens Compensation Insurance, Medicare, Medicaid and some private insurance polices cover prosthetics.
The problem is that a growing number of group and private insurance companies cap the benefit so low that the average working family cant afford a prosthetic. Other insurance companies are creating lifetime caps or eliminating coverage completely.
What does a family do when they are recovering from the horror of a husband, wife or child losing an arm or a leg and they are told that their insurance will not cover the cost of a prosthetic? In return for premiums paid for group health insurance, consumers expect to be covered for catastrophic illness or injury. When they dont have adequate coverage families often go into serious debt. They mortgage homes, get bank loans, use college and retirement savings or cost-shift to the state to get a prosthetic from Medicaid.
Is it true that providing prosthetics can actually save the state money? YES! The public sector will see cost savings because appropriate private insurance coverage prevents cost shifting to the public sector. Cost savings can also be expected in unemployment insurance, state employment and training programs, rehabilitation and counseling programs and other social welfare systems. It is estimated that every dollar spent on rehabilitation, including prosthetic care, saves more than $11 in disability benefits. Non-fiscal benefits include a reduction in the secondary conditions caused by a sedentary lifestyle, decreased dependence on caretakers, and reduced chance of diabetic-related complications leading to additional limb amputation. In addition, this segment of the population can become contributing members of society instead of dependant on it. For more information, contact the ACA at APPLL@amputee-coalition.org
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