Hearings for Prosthetic Parity in Jeff City March 3

Mark your calendars foe Tuesday, March 3. Our Lobbyist Kent has arranged hearings for us in front of senate and house committees. Hearing times are 8:30am and 12:00pm. If as many amputees as possible could come, that would be great. We need to pack the rooms, and some of us will be able to speak/testify to the lawmakers.

Article from deseretnews.com: Bill puts prosthetics on par with hip replacements

Bill McLellan (bmclellan@pandocare.com) thought you might be interested in reading the following story, which appeared on deseretnews.com on .

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BILL PUTS PROSTHETICS ON PAR WITH HIP REPLACEMENTS
A bill that would put prosthetics on par with hip replacements in medical insurance plans passed out of a legislative committee with one opposing vote, despite stiff opposition from some lawmakers and the insurance industry who regard HB89 as yet another mandate to a health-care system that is falling apart.
FULL STORY: http://deseretnews.com/article/1%2C5143%2C705286787%2C00.html

Our Prosthetic Parity Bill Assigned to Great Committees

The Missouri Prosthetic Parity Bill is HB 616 in the House and SB 320 in the Senate. It has been assigned to the House committee on Health Policy, chaired by our bill sponsor Rep. Dr. Wayne Cooper, a Republican from Camdenton. In the Senate, it has been assigned to the committee on Health, Mental Health, Seniors and Families, chaired by Senator Norma Champion – R (Springfield). Last year we were assigned to the insurance committees, so this is a positive development. You can follow the progress of these bills by clicking on the links provided. If you live in Senator Champion's district around Springfield, MO, please call her and let her know of your support for SB 320. We expect to have hearings around the beginning of March--coming up quick--so please make plans to attend, especially if you are an amputee affected by insurance caps on your coverage.

E-mail-A-Friend: Maryland teenager urges legislators for insurance coverage for prosthetics

Story:
Maryland teenager urges legislators for insurance coverage for prosthetics

ANNAPOLIS - Lorenzo Smith never thought he'd be penalized for growing taller, but his HMO insurance plan, UnitedHealthcare, says he has to pay.

The 15-year-old was charged more than $20,000 for growing 5 inches in 4 years, and he dares to keep growing.

For more of this story, click on or type the URL below:

http://www.ifawebnews.com/articles/2009/02/12/marylanddc/doc49940d5785a9f980978955.txt

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New MCPLL Pay Pal Donation Button

It’s never been easier to support working amputees by donating to the Missouri Coalition for People with Limb Loss. In addition to the contributions that have come from prosthetic companies all over the Show Me State, we need every prosthetist and other concerned individuals to join the fight against the injustice that is keeping our patients down.

Times are tough for everyone right now, but every little bit counts! We know that we can get a prosthetic parity law passed in Missouri this year. Making your individual contribution is this simple: simply click on the “Support Prosthetic Parity” button below, and follow the instructions to pay with Pay Pal or any major credit card. Then check http://molimbloss.blogspot.com to see who else has contributed. Your name will show up there soon!

Share this page with your friends! We need your help educating and persuading all the new and returning representatives and senators in Jeff City that prosthetic parity makes good health care policy for working families and the entire State of Missouri during these financially troubled times.

Thanks to all those individuals who have made contributions so far!

Dan and Julie Luitjohan, Greg Doerr, Richard Haws, Richard Thiele, Rudy and Mary Kay Stecich, Kimberly and Donald Adkins, Joe Curotto, Fred and Pat Sexauer, Stephen and Angela Mestres, Dennis and Melinda Richards, Michael and Lucy Hey, Fred and Karen Vaught, Tonya Tebbe, Bill and Amy McLellan, Emily Zdenek, Marlene H. Mestres, Marlene M. Mestres, Tim Mestres, Richard Schumacher, John Rocky Reitmeyer, Fred Whiteford, Bill and Sue Brannan, Dixon and Barbara Smith, Walter and Carol Burkart, Shirley Luebbers, Paul Wunderlich, George and Denise Huber, Claire Willman, James and Barb Freeman, Maurice Graham, Todd Hilliker, Angela and John Gantzer, Robert and Margaret Beck, Ronald and Christine Roche, Dana and Sue Hockensmith, Dennis and Jo Ann Martin . . .

Northwest Kansas Diabetes Support Group : Prosthetic Parity in Kansas

Bill McLellan has sent you a link to a blog:

Advocates for prosthetic parity in Kansas are taking a different approach than Missouri and some other states. Instead of trying to change the law, they are trying to get the State's insurance board to change it's rules. For them, this requires 10,000 signatures on their petition.

Blog: Northwest Kansas Diabetes Support Group
Post: Prosthetic Parity in Kansas
Link: http://nwksdiabetes.blogspot.com/2008/10/prosthetic-parity-in-kansas.html

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STLtoday - Pinning blame on patients for costs won't lead to

Doug Ervine, Republican State Rep for the Health Insurance industry here in the great state of MO, thinks that people would take better care of themselves if they had to pay out of pocket more. Mary Jo Feldstein thinks otherwise.

read more | digg story

Now, Donate with PayPal

Whether you are a Missouri amputee, physician, rehab therapist, prosthetists, family member, or anyone else concerned that insurance companies cover prosthetics, you can support the cause for parity just by clicking the button below or in the column on the right. PayPal is an incredibly safe and easy way to pay online. You can set up an account or use your credit card. All proceeds go toward getting a prosthetic parity law passed in Missouri in 2009.

NPR.org - Mental Health Parity Approved With Bailout Bill : NPR

Bill McLellan thought you would be interested in this story: Mental Health Parity Approved With Bailout Bill : NPR
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=95435676&sc=emaf

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Missouri Prosthetic Companies Should Financialy Support Parity

Recently, the MCPLL has had a harder time than expected getting financial support for prosthetic parity from the prosthetic industry here in Missouri, who should be the first to support this legislation. Working-age amputees are leading the effort, and they stand to gain the most in terms of quality of life. But prosthetic companies are the ones with the money who understand the issue and deal with the insurance companies most directly, and they also stand to benefit financially from the passage of parity legislation. That means they should pay the bulk of what it costs to get any law passed in our society (for good or ill), and that means paying a professional representative, also known as a lobbyist. However, it’s becoming more and more difficult to stay current on our payments to our lobbyist, Kent Gaines, who is doing an excellent job gaining strategic allies in the legislature.

At first, several companies jumped at the chance to give, so we had money in the bank, and some of them have even stepped up to shell out more money as it starts to run out. But fewer and fewer practices seem interested. Amputees in Missouri are urged to take a look at the list below, also found in the right margin, where it will be constantly updated as new checks and pledges come in.

Illinois does things differently. They have a professional association of prosthetists and orthotists that collects dues, and some of that money goes to its government relations efforts, including parity. Here in Missouri, efforts to get just such an association started led first to our highest priority, helping our patients get this law passed.

Here is the list of contributing prosthetic practices in MO, in alphabetical order, also available on http://molimbloss.blogspot.com:

• Advanced O & P (pledged)
• Central Brace Company
• Hanger O & P
• Lux O & P (pledged)
• O & P Design
• O & P Labs
• P & O Care

The following individual prosthetists have also made personal contributions:

• Dan Luitjohan
• Richard Haws
• Richard Thiele

Parity Fact Sheet: Good Medicine for Working Families

General Campaign Fact Sheet - Upload a Document to Scribd

Parity Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate

I was browsing through Workforce and I thought you would find this interesting:

http://www.workforce.com/section/00/article/25/77/62.php

Amputee Videos: from Golf to Parity and More

Missouri Coalition for People with Limb Loss Flyer

Missouri Coalition for People with Limb Loss - Upload a Document to Scribd

Read this document on Scribd: Missouri Coalition for People with Limb Loss

Prosthetic Parity: Saving Money, Saving Lives

Prosthetic Parity: Saving Money Saving Lives - Upload a Document to Scribd

Read this document on Scribd: Prosthetic Parity: Saving Money Saving Lives

BBQ and Washer Toss Raise $3,000 and Awareness for Prosthetic Parity

Quest for Parity in Kansas

Check out this blog on the quest for prosthetic parity coverage in Kansas. It sounds like Elizabeth Dole (R-NC) might introduce our bill in the U.S. Senate.

Update: Prosthetic Parity across the Nation

The cover story by Jennifer Hoydicz about prosthetic parity for the new issue of O & P Business News contains an update on the MCPLL’s efforts here in Missouri. You can read the full story here or the excerpt below:

The 2008 legislative session gave the Missouri bill a chance to begin movement. The bill was referred to the Senate committee and passed but session adjourned before the bill could be heard on the floor. Organizers, Jeff Damerall, Jean Freeman and Bill McLellan are all pleased with the movement and reception the bill has received thus far.

“We are looking forward to the next session in 2009 and having a prosthetic parity bill put forward in the House and the Senate,” Freeman said. “We were happy with the turnout for the Senate and the House hearings but particularly the House hearings. We had 20 to 30 individuals there … and it made an impression on the representatives.”

McLellan explained that the Missouri prosthetic parity bill was coupled with an autism parity bill and in the process was amended to become a mandated offer bill instead of a pure mandate.

“An offer … requires health insurance companies to offer to sell individuals and companies policies that include prosthetic coverage but not all of their policies have to include prosthetic coverage,” McLellan said. “So companies and individuals can choose to buy less expensive policies that don’t include prosthetic coverage. This was a compromise we were willing to make with the insurance companies in our first year.”

Despite the compromise, the bill stalled. The bill will be reintroduced in January 2009 to a better educated and informed group of legislators.

“We have made a lot of headway with individual legislators and bringing in that momentum which is helpful,” Damerall said.

When the bill is reintroduced, that momentum will be particularly important as they are expecting to enlist new sponsors for the bill as well as additional legislators for support.

“We are trying for everything we want,” Damerall said, explaining that they are aiming to change the language once again for full coverage. This time we are saying that if you provide individual coverage or group coverage, small group coverage, whatever coverage you are going to provide the benefit not just the offer.”

To continue the momentum and keep motivations high, the Missouri campaign is planning a number of events this summer which they hope will continue to raise awareness.