TN Autism Legislation - Update
Submitted by Todd Hash on Fri, 04/10/2009 - 3:28pm.
A revitalized and expanded Autism Equity Act is under attack from the health insurance industry and TennCare so your help is desperately needed.
If your legislator is on one of the committees below, then please give him or her a call, maybe send a letter or email and ask them to support, maybe even sponsor, new legislation that will significantly improve coverage, especially for behavioral therapies.
At the end of this post we have additional talking points.
House Commerce - Industrial Impact Subcommittee
Phone: (615) 741-1963, Email: rep.charles.curtiss@capitol.tn.gov
Dennis Roach - District 35 - Claiborne, Grainger, and part of Jefferson County
Phone: (615) 741-2534, Email: rep.dennis.roach@capitol.tn.gov
Joanne Favors - District 29 - part of Hamilton County
Phone: (615) 741-2702, Email: rep.joanne.favors@capitol.tn.gov
Dennis Ferguson - Dristrict 32 - Roane and part of Loundon County
Phone: (615) 741-7658, Email: rep.dennis.ferguson@capitol.tn.gov
Jon Lundberg - District 1 - part of Sullivan County
Phone: (615) 741-7623, Email: rep.jon.lundberg@capitol.tn.gov
Joe McCord - District 8 - parts of Blount and Sevier Counties
Phone: (615) 741-5481, Email: rep.joe.mccord@capitol.tn.gov
Gerald McCormick - District 26 - part of Hamilton County
Phone: (615) 741-2548, Email: rep.gerald.mccormick@capitol.tn.gov
Jimmy Naifeh - District 81 - Haywood and part of Tipton County
Phone: (615) 741-3774, Email: spk.eme.jimmy.naifeh@capitol.tn.gov
Charles Sargent - District 61 - part of Williamson County
Phone: (615) 741-6808, Email: rep.charles.sargent@capitol.tn.gov
David Shepard (Sponsor) - District 69 - Dickson and part of Hickman County - Please Thank David!
Phone: (615) 741-3513 - Email: rep.david.shepard@capitol.tn.gov
Curry Todd (sponsor) - District 95 - Part of Shelby County - Please Thank Curry!
Phone: (615) 741-1866, Email: rep.curry.todd@capitol.tn.gov
Joe Towns, Jr - District 84 - Part of Shelby County
Phone: (615) 741-2189, Email: rep.joe.towns@capitol.tn.gov
Remainder of House Commerce Committee
Beth Harwell - District 56 - part of Davidson County
Phone: (615) 741-0709, Email: rep.beth.harwell@capitol.tn.gov
Steve McManus - District 96 - part of Shelby County
Phone: (615) 741-1920, Email: rep.steve.mcmanus@capitol.tn.gov
Joe Carr - District 48 - part of Rutherford County
Phone: (615) 741-2180, Email: rep.joe.carr@capitol.tn.gov
Glenn Casada - District 61 - part of Williamson County
Phone: (615) 741-4389, Email: rep.glen.casada@capitol.tn.gov
Curt Cobb - District 62 - Bedford and parts of Lincoln and Rutherford Counties
Phone: (615) 741-6824, Email: rep.curt.cobb@capitol.tn.gov
Craig Fitzhugh - District 82 - Lauderdale, Crockett, and part of Dyer County
Phone: (615) 741-2134, Email: rep.craig.fitzhugh@capitol.tn.gov
Brenda Gilmore - District 54 - Part of Davidson County
Phone: (615) 741-1997, Email: rep.brenda.gilmore@capitol.tn.gov
Jim Hackworth - District 33 - part of Anderson County
Phone: (615) 741-4400, Email: rep.jim.hackworth@capitol.tn.gov
Bill Harmon - District 37 - Sequatchie, Van Buren, Grundy, and Marion Counties
Phone: (615) 741-6849, Email: rep.bill.harmon@capitol.tn.gov
Curtis Johnson - District 68 - part of Montgomery County
Phone: (615) 741-4341, Email: rep.curtis.johnson@capitol.tn.gov
Phillip Johnson - District 78 - Cheatham and parts of Montgomery and Williamson Counties
Phone: (615) 741-7477, Email: rep.phillip.johnson@capitol.tn.gov
Susan Lynn - District 57 - Part of Sumner and Wilson Counties
Phone: (615) 741-7462, Email: rep.susan.lynn@capitol.tn.gov
Jimmy Matlock - District 21 - parts of Loudon and Monroe Counties
Phone: (615) 741-3736, Email: rep.jimmy.matlock@capitol.tn.gov
Richard Montgomery - District 12 - part of Sevier County
Phone: (615) 741-5981, Email: rep.richard.montgomery@capitol.tn.gov
Joe Pitts - District 67 - Montgomery County
Phone: (615) 741-2043, Email: rep.joe.pitts@capitol.tn.gov
Mike Stewart - District 52 - part of Davidson County
Phone: (615) 741-2184, Email: rep.mike.stewart@capitol.tn.gov
Larry Turner - District 85 - part of Shelby County
Phone: (615) 741-6954, Email: rep.larry.turner@capitol.tn.gov
Eddie Yokley - District 11 - Cocke and part of Greene County
Phone: (615) 741-6871, Email: rep.eddie.yokley@capitol.tn.gov
Senate Commerce
Paul Stanley (Sponsor) - District 31 - Part of Shelby County - Please Thank Paul!
Phone: (615) 741-3036, Email: sen.paul.stanley@capitol.tn.gov
Dewayne Bunch - District 9 - Bradley, McMinn, Meigs, and Polk Counties
Phone: (615) 741-70, Email: sen.dewayne.bunch@capitol.tn.gov
Charlotte Burks - District 15 - Cumberland, Jackson, Overton, Pickett, Putnam & White Counties
Phone: (615) 741-3978, Email: sen.charlotte.burks@capitol.tn.gov
Mae Beavers - District 17 - Cannon, Clay, DeKalb, Macon, Smith, Trousdale, Wilson and part of Sumner County.
Phone: (615) 741-2421, Email: sen.mae.beavers@capitol.tn.gov
Tim Burchett - District 7 - Part of Knox County
Phone: (615) 741-1766, Email: sen.tim.burchett@capitol.tn.gov
Jack Johnson - District 23 - Williamson and part of Davidson County
Phone: (615) 741-2495, Email: sen.jack.johnson@capitol.tn.gov
Bill Ketron (Sponsor) - District 13 - Lincoln, Marshall, Maury, and part of Rutherford County. - Please thank Ketron.
Phone: (615) 741-6853, Email: sen.bill.ketron@capitol.tn.gov
Eric Stewart - District 14 - Franklin, Bledsoe, Coffee, Grundy, Sequatchie, Van Buren and Warren Counties.
Phone: (615) 741-6694, Email: sen.eric.stewart@capitol.tn.gov
Reginald Tate - District 33 - Part of Shelby County
Phone: (615) 741-2509, Email: sen.reginald.tate@capitol.tn.gov
TALKING POINTS
History
In 2006 the Tennessee General Assembly took unanimous, bipartisan, and
proactive stand to address the needs of children with an Autism
Spectrum Disorder (ASD) by passing the Autism Equity Act (AEA). The
legislation was a first step to tearing down barriers that prevent
children with an ASD from receiving needed therapies.
Looking to the Future
Now that parents, providers, and health insurers in Tennessee have had
a couple of years to begin breaking down the barriers to coverage, it
is time to take the next step. New legislation has been introduced
that will build on the AEA by ensuring that children and adolescents
receive therapeutic levels of care.
The New Legislation - What it should do
- Age for Coverage - Previously coverage was limited to age 11, but new legislation should increase the age for coverage.
- Clarifies the Types of Therapies - Make explicit the variety of therapies that a child with an ASD may need such as speech/language, occupational, and behavioral therapies, including Applied Behavioral Analysis and others.
- Therapeutic Levels of Coverage - Ensures that health care plans provide not only access to therapies, but also to therapeutic levels of proven, evidence-based care necessary to make meaningful improvements in long-term functioning.
Benefits of Coverage
Preserving the Family - Raising a child with an ASD can be emotionally, financially, and socially challenging for families. Many families go deeply in debt to pay for necessary health care therapies while many more children simply go without the benefit of proven, research-based therapies that can be life changing.
Treatment Today or Dependency Tomorrow - The key to minimizing the long-term impact of an ASD is early treatment through a variety of therapies tailored to the needs of the individual child. Providing therapeutic levels of coverage early in life is the key to improving a child's ability to participate in the world around them while becoming independent and self-sufficient.
