CPAN Hails Passage of Senate Bills Which Would End Michigan’s Care Crisis and Protect Current and Future Crash Survivors
LANSING, Mich.—(Oct. 19, 2023)—CPAN, the consumer protection organization fighting for fair insurance laws, today hailed the passage of Senate Bills 530, 531 and 575, which would end Michigan’s catastrophic care crisis and protect current and future crash survivors. The bills will now move to the House of Representatives.
“For 20 years, CPAN protected the critically important medical expense benefits and legal rights of people severely injured in motor vehicle accidents, as promised under the state’s long-established no-fault insurance law,” said Tim Hoste, CPAN president. “Unfortunately, the 2019 auto insurance reforms have had a disastrous impact on crash survivors and the providers who care for them—a fact that has been well-documented in independent studies, news stories, and the emotional testimony of some of our state’s most vulnerable residents. These bills will restore needed protections for current and future crash survivors while still maintaining the intent of the 2019 reforms.
These bills would:
End Michigan’s crisis in care by developing a fee schedule for post-acute care services that are reasonable, fair and in line with the Medicare standard used for acute-care services. A study by the nonprofit public health institute MPHI found that as of April 2022, the nearly 50% cut in reimbursements for catastrophic care had led to more than 7,000 patient discharges, the loss of more than 4,000 health care jobs, and the closure of 24 businesses. Senate Bills 530, 531 and 575 would ensure that crash survivors are able to access needed care.
Protect families by eliminating the 56-hour per-week reimbursement limit on personal caregivers. Family members, friends and other home-based caregivers often play vital roles in the continuum of care for survivors of catastrophic crashes. For some survivors, their personal values or cultural traditions may require that family members provide their care. Other survivors have no choice, perhaps because they live in an isolated area or simply due to the ongoing shortage of nurses and home health aides. In many cases, family members wish to dedicate their lives to providing quality care to their loved one, requiring them to leave their career behind. Regardless of the reasons, the 56-hour per-week cap on personal caregivers is arbitrary and unnecessary.
Maintain cost-saving measures included in the 2019 reforms. The proposed fee schedule will help lower costs by reducing unnecessary waste and litigation in the system. These bills will not change the major cost-containment elements included in the 2019 law, including choice in Personal Injury Protection (PIP) levels, reform to the assigned claims plan, and utilization review.
“Senate Bills 530, 531 and 575 offer narrow and specific changes that will ensure that all crash survivors—regardless of when or how they were injured—receive the care they were promised,” Hoste said. “For two years, crash survivors and care providers have been pleading for this solution. We call on the House of Representatives to act with haste to pass these bills and end Michigan’s care crisis.”