News and Knowledge

The Alabama Senate has passed a bill (HB284) that will require many insurers to cover applied behavior analysis (ABA), the most common and scientifically supported treatment for autism. Currently, Alabama is one of five states that do not require insurance companies to cover behavioral autism therapy.

After a 100-0 vote in favor of the bill in the Alabama House in April, the Senate has passed the bill with amendments. The Senate amendments include requiring only companies with at least 51 employees to comply with the mandate and making coverage apply only to individuals up to age 18. The bill now returns to the House, and if the changes are accepted, the bill will be sent to Gov. Kay Ivey, according to an article in the “Montgomery Advertiser.”

The cost of providing coverage has been the major issue the bill faces. Budget committee chairman, Sen. Trip Pittman (R-Montrose), told Al.com that “the bill has tremendous importance. It has tremendous fiscal ramifications. There’s a lot of emotion involved in the bill.”

Both the Business Council of Alabama and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, the state’s largest insurance company, oppose the bill. They believe that the mandate will be costly to Alabama businesses, estimating annual costs at between $48.8 million and $97.7 million.

To provide limits, the original House bill mandated coverage caps, which the Senate version retains. The caps are based on age, with the highest coverage for children between 0 and 9 years old, and the lowest coverage for those between the ages of 14 and 18. In an article in “U.S. News & World Report,” Koko Mackin, a Blue Cross spokeswoman, said the coverage caps “may be well intended, but they are unenforceable and in contradiction to federal law.”

Despite opposition, parents and advocates for the bill have helped pushed it through the legislative process.

ABA is an individualized and intense form of therapy that can cost up to $120 an hour and thousands of dollars each month, making it unavailable to many children who require it. According to a recent article from Al.com, parent Robert Luckhardt of Birmingham reported that his 4-year-old son has autism and receives behavioral therapy at a cost of $20,000 to $40,000 a year, which he says could mostly be covered by insurance if the bill becomes law.

According to Al.com, Rep. Jim Patterson (R-Meridianville), the bill’s sponsor, said it was good to see lawmakers advancing the bill considering the influential opposition. “It passed because the people wanted it,” said Patterson. “…We did what the people wanted rather than the special interests wanted. That’s powerful. The people had a victory today.”