To All, This is a much needed victory for Children with ASD. Many times I have contacted all of you asking you to write, email or call your Senators and Representatives to make a difference for the children who so desperately need these services. I have spoken to you about the National Standards Report released from the National Autism Center explaining that these behavioral services are evidence based and work wonders for children on the spectrum. It is with sincere thanks and gratitude that my family and I thank you now! Joshua may finally get the services he so desperately needs and hopefully won’t be caught in the middle of a budget crisis between the schools and the insurance companies. This is the best Christmas present Joshua received this year. The next step is to get the schools to agree to let the outside providers in the schools. Thanks again. Senate Passes Historic Health Insurance Reform Thursday, December 24, 2009 Availability of Behavioral Coverage for Autism Included This morning, the U.S. Senate passed historic health insurance reform legislation in a 60-39 vote. The legislation aims to create major health insurance reforms to cover an estimated additional 30 million Americans, provide Medicare Part D prescription drug cost relief for seniors and cut the budget deficit by a projected $132 billion over the first ten years and as much as $1.3 trillion over the next ten. The Senate bill and House of Representatives bill will be reconciled in a conference committee over the next few weeks before a vote on final approval, likely in January. The Autism Society applauds the insurance reform amendments that will increase the availability of behavioral coverage for families affected by asd across the US. This legislation reads: "AUTISM – Requiring insurance plans to provide behavioral health treatments. Plans in the exchange must cover behavioral health treatments as part of the minimum benefits standard. For example, applied behavior analysis is a behavioral health treatment for people with autism. Unless behavioral health treatment is explicitly spelled out as a covered benefit, people with autism are not likely to receive comprehensive healthcare." |
