For Immediate Release: Feb. 22, 2018
Senator Paul Wieland Presents Legislation to Protect Pregnant Women and Emergency Room Patients
JEFFERSON CITY — State Sen. Paul Wieland, R-Imperial, presented two bills in the Missouri Senate’s Insurance and Banking Committee on Tuesday, February 20. The first piece of legislation, Senate Bill 879, allows pregnant women to purchase health insurance outside the normal enrollment period.
“If we are truly going to call ourselves a pro-life state, then Missouri needs to give women every opportunity to choose a health insurance plan that is right for them during their pregnancy,” said Sen. Wieland. “The cost of a pregnancy should never play a role in deciding whether or not to bring a pregnancy to full term.”
This plan received a wide range of support and opposition.
“This bill had great support from Missouri Right to Life, Campaign for Life, Missouri Family Health Council and March of Dimes,” said Sen. Wieland. “It was unfortunate to see opposition from insurance companies and financial advisors on this important piece of legislation.”
Additionally, Sen. Wieland also presented Senate Bill 982 for consideration. Recently, a major health insurance provider has begun denying insurance claims based on the individual’s final medical diagnosis, rather than the symptoms that led to the emergency room visit. Currently, Missouri operates under the “prudent layperson” standard, which states that if a person with average medical knowledge believes they need emergency room care, then the medical incident would be covered. SB 982 reinforces this reasonable, commonsense standard and protects consumers from health insurance companies looking to take advantage of an unfortunate situation.
“If a person sincerely believes they were having a heart attack, and it turned out to gastroesophageal reflux disease, it is unfair for the insurance company to look at the information after the fact to decide if that claim should be covered,” said Sen. Wieland. “This legislation ensures the insurance company only looks at the severity of the symptoms that the individual had when they first arrived to the ER. Although organizations such as the Missouri Insurance Coalition testified against this bill, SB 982 received support from the American Heart Association as well as hospital and emergency room doctors.”
For more information on Sen. Wieland’s legislation, please visit his official Missouri Senate website at www.senate.mo.gov/wieland.
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