ADVOCACY UPDATE: Pennsylvania HB 2718 Hearing a Great Success!
October 19, 2006 the Pennsylvania Health and Human Services Committee heard HB 2718, a bill requiring insurance companies to cover prosthetic devices and components.

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On Thursday, October 19, the Pennsylvania Health and Human Services Committee heard HB 2718, a bill requiring insurance companies to cover prosthetic devices and components. 

 

 

Michael and Sean Brame testify before the House Health and Human Services Committee.

 

The hearing was a great success. Private individuals and practitioners from across the state came out in support of this important bill. Both the Vice Chair, Rep. Fred McIlhattan, and the primary sponsor, Rep. Bernie O’Neill, publicly stated a goal of passing this legislation in 2007. 

 

“My challenge to Fred is to pass this bill by June of 2007,” says Rep. O’Neill. 

“My goal is to pass this legislation by the end of 2007,” added Rep. McIlhattan.

 Next Steps: The Pennsylvania legislature will adjourn for the year on November 30. It is unlikely that the bill will proceed in the next month; however, with such strong support from the committee, we are gearing up to reintroduce this bill in January and continue to move this bill forward. 

 

Mark Your Calendars: We are working with Rep. Bernie O’Neill to organize a rally in support of prosthetic coverage in January! More details to come soon!

 

Thank you! Thank you to all of the Pennsylvania activists who made phone calls, wrote letters and sent e-mails to their representatives and the committee members. This has truly made a difference! We will definitely need your continued assistance and dedication in the coming months as we work to pass this important bill into law!

 

We are excited about the results of Thursday’s hearing. We are looking forward to continued opportunities to advance this legislation!

 

Testimony was given by:

 

  • Michael and Sean Brame

Sean lost both his legs and one of his arms as a result of an infection. He and his father testified about the importance of covering care for growing children to enable them to lead active lives. 

 

  • Georgia Foltz, RN

Georgia is a case manager for Workmen’s Compensation and an amputee. She is very active in the Amputee Support Team (AST). She spoke about the need to look at the long-term costs of refusing prosthetic care, such as lost wages and secondary conditions.

                                              

  • Garry Moore

Garry is a project manager for Adaptive Action Sports and the captain of Amped Riders. He was recently informed that his insurance company has a $7,000 lifetime cap on his prosthetic care. This has made it very difficult for him to find and keep a job and be there for his two small children. He talked about the importance of providing people the care they need in return for the high premiums that they pay to insurance companies.

 

  • John Rush, MD

Dr. Rush is the chief medical officer for Hanger Orthopedic, Inc. He talked about the research and cost estimates that have been done on prosthetic coverage, showing that this benefit is not only low-cost, but also results in medical savings in the long run.

 

  • Morgan Sheets

Morgan is the national advocacy director of the Amputee Coalition of America.  She talked about polling and surveys that were conducted by the ACA at the state and national level, demonstrating the need for coverage as well as the various ways that coverage is currently being limited. She also shared additional research on the cost benefit of providing prosthetic care.

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