Comments about ‘Utah Legislature: Bill would require insurers to cover prosthetics’

GO TAMI!! The work you have been doing helps so many in this state. We can only hope that our legislature sees the merit of having citizens being productive members of our state instead of disabled people stuck in a nightmare of dependency on others to just exist.

What courage this woman is showing! How sad that we deny medical coverage to our neighbors who so desparately need it!

Now if we could just get stomach bypass surgeries covered.

Utah is not the only state with this policy. After my amputation, I was floored to find out all of the costs that insurance won't cover for disabled. No wonder, most amputees never return to the work force. The system discards them. I wanted to return to work. Prosthetics, though expensive, was just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to insurance not covering things. I have been forced into a wheelchair, and loved to find out that insurance would pay a small portion of the cost of the chair, but that once I have a chair, they would pay nothing to make it possible to transport the chair between home and work (no coverage for lift etc.) I am glad to hear that someone is making a difference.

KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. You know you are not doing all this for yourself BUT for all the other amputees out there who need Legs to walk on and Arms to work with. "M" for Merit is good.

I wonder how many people who so stridently denounce health care reform efforts as a government power grab would change their tune if confronted by examples of selfish, greedy insurance company insensitivity such as this.

There is no additional cost to the state by passing this bill. Some businesses and local governments (I would say only a few), according to the bill's fiscal note, may be impacted by additional insurance costs.

There is no good, justifiable reason not to pass this bill. It just makes sense. It's the right thing to do. It's humane.

My co-workers are often shocked to learn that I am an amputee because I walk normally and have few restrictions. Just lost weight (good for my long-term health, right?) and need a new prosthetic. Have worked for LDS church whose insurance in the past is most generous on this coverage, but just got a denial notice from Deseret Mutual. Fighting it. Hope this bill passes for those who have had little coverage if any. Prior to my surgery, Tami helped my family adjust to the shock. She is my angel. Joe Mahon as an artist and technician, gave me my life back. He may not be the best prosthetist in the country, but when that guy dies . . .

Wow, whatever happened to self reliance. The things being said here remind me of my kids asking for a Wii. "We NEED it." "I don't want to save my money for that, you can buy it for me."

If a person loses a limb in a work related accident, Workman's Compensation pays that person for their medicle expenses, so don't use the arguement about work accidents. That fund also pays for education expenses if their disability prevents them from going back to their original occupation.

For the others, I have a simple question. Do you want your insurance rates to go up? If this passes, it will INCREASE your insurance rates, along with the rates of everybody around you. Are you willing to tell your co-workers why their insurance rates went up $10/month or more?

We try to be self reliant by having health insurance. Glad you have $18,000 for a prosthetic limb RedShirt. This isn't an unreasonable thing to expect insurance to cover. For someone obviously wealthy RedShirt, you certainly are cheap.

In the 18 states where this legislation has been adopted, the DATA shows it will COST 5 cents per member per month or 60 cents per member per year. RedShirt, please stop trying to use SCARE tactics to sell your agenda. Check the Data. Talk to Tami Stanley about self reliance.

I am glad one person took a look at the other side of the issue but disappointed that the rebuttals were so personal. The issue revolves around the degree of coverage we want. Prosthetics are great. So are a number of other health care benefits that enhance or extend life. Yet, we are all concerned about the cost of health care and insurance. One of the reasons that health insurance has become more expensive year after year is that we demand more and more from it. Here is a question with absolutely no DATA to back it up - If you could reduce healthcare costs by 80% by decreasing life expectancy by one year, would that be a good tradeoff?

In defining "prosthetics" it seems that some are saying it is a luxury. Would a hip be removed without replacing it or a knee? If you are in a car accident and lose a limb wouldn't that be a necessary thing to replace. When you sign up for insurance and you are a male you don't sign up for pregnancy benefits but you are in a group where that is covered and you pay for it. No one thinks they will ever need to replace a limb until it happens.

How do you define "Prosthetics"? If you have a bad hip joint or knee and have it removed don't they pay to have it replaced by a man made one? If you have a limb removed shouldn't you be able to have it replaced by a man made one? Limbs are not a luxury! There are many things you, as a group, pay for that you never expect to collect on. Prosthetics might be in your coverage, or not,but what if you are in a car accident and lose a limb. Would you still consider that coverage a luxury?

Guess what Red Shirt? You are already paying for it! Guess where your taxes are going? Ever heard of disability? Amputation is very devastating physically, and financially. This bill actually helps people get off of disability, back to work, and paying taxes. For $0.60 a year, it is well worth it.

I'm so glad you have hundreds of thousands, if not millions of dollars saved up in case of a horrific injury or illness. Most of us don't. I guess we can all just die while you sit in your ivory tower tossing insults at us.

Hearing aids are not covered by insurance. (But if you want a way more expensive and risky-to-your-health surgically implanted cochlear implant, you can get that without out of pocket expense. Although the years of therapy/training required after a cochlear implant surgery is not covered.)

PLEASE, health insurance, PLEASE cover important things like hearing aids, prosthetics, etc.

Maybe not all insurance plans need to, but at least let there be some or an optional add on or something like that so we *can* have them covered. They are not luxuries like wii's or nice cars. They are necessary to help us function like everyone else. And they are not something we "fail" to save up for either. Cars and Wii's and such, yes we save up for those, but when an accident happens, that is what we have insurance for!

Wow, I like her stylish leg!!

(and Red Shirt - you have no class! Wanting a prosthestic to be covered by insurance is NOT the same as whining for a Wii! Not even close!)