Legislators send autism bill to Jindal

• By SARAH CHACKO
• Advocate Capitol News Bureau
• Published: Jun 12, 2008 - Page: 7A - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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Legislation mandating state health insurance coverage of autism treatments for children is headed to the governor’s desk, having cleared the Legislature on Wednesday without one opposing vote.

Supporters and legislators applauded as the Louisiana Senate approved the House-passed bill with a 33-0 vote.

“I think the Legislature recognized what an epidemic autism is in society,” said state Rep. Franklin Foil, R-Baton Rouge and sponsor of House Bill 958.

Autism is a complex brain disorder that inhibits a person’s ability to communicate and develop social relationships.

Foil, the father of an autistic child, said most people know someone who is autistic or have a loved one who is autistic. He said the grassroots groups were integral in the success of the bill.

Supporters and parents of autistic children followed the measure through the legislative process, scolding opposing groups and asking legislators for help in treating their children. As the Senate was meeting on its final passage, they rallied on the Capitol steps.

State Sen. Don Cravins Jr., who handled House Bill 958 for Foil, said he spoke to several parents of autistic children before the session about their struggles, the costs associated with the disorder and available treatments that they could not access.

“When I heard that, even though this is a mandate and I’m usually against mandates, I knew that this was different,” said Cravins, D-Opelousas.

HB958 would require health insurance coverage of the diagnosis and treatment of autism spectrum disorders in children under age 17. The benefits could not exceed $36,000 per year and $144,000 per lifetime.

Businesses with 50 or fewer employees would be exempt, as would individually underwritten, guaranteed renewable policies.

State Sen. Robert Adley, D-Benton, said he received a message that current law already mandates coverage on autism.

Cravins, noting that he received the same message from the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry, said the legislation would remove autism from the mental health classification, which is currently covered in some instances, and classify it as a neurological disorder.

The measure would also include a specific type of therapy — applied behavior analysis — which is not currently mandated anywhere, Cravins said.