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August 1, 2011

Legislative Wrap-Up: MS Activists=Success

We relentlessly advocate for federal, state, and local government policies essential to people affected by MS, and we champion the rights of people with disabilities.

Learn More About Policy Areas Where MS Activists Made a Difference:

• Texas Public Policy Conference 2011
• MS Activists' Priority Legislation
• The Texas Budget
• Protecting Respite Funding
• OPIC Amendments Withdrawn from HB 1
• Banning Discretionary Clauses
• Continuity of Prescription Drug Coverage
• Working in Partnership:  Other Key Issues
• Texas Health Care Connector
• A Comprehensive Access Point for Long Term Care Services

Texas Public Policy Conference 2011

The 2011 Texas Public Policy Conference brought 50 of our most passionate activists together for three days of advocacy skills training and education about key bills before the Texas Legislature.  

Our program included dynamic speakers who provided insight and coached activists on sharing their personal MS experiences with lawmakers. We were honored to welcome guests from The Center for Public Policy Priorities, the Austin American-Statesman and The Texas Tribune.

The high point of the conference came with a motivational call to action by State Representative Rick Hardcastle (R-Vernon), who shared his personal story of living with MS. With his words to inspire and energize, attendees headed off to the Texas Capitol to meet with state officials.   

There MS Activists put their advocacy skills to work to raise awareness and visit with their legislators. During their visits activists shared their personal stories with their elected officials. They also  requested support for consistent prescription drug coverage and sustained funding for essential supports, like community based services, Medicaid programs, and long-term services and supports.  

Activist Natalie Steadman visited with Rep. Jim Landtroop (R-Plainview) and her experience was echoed by countless others. Natalie said, “I met with my Representative and told him my personal story. He believes it is wrong for insurance companies to make changes and not follow the contract. It was a great visit and I got to connect with a Texas representative on a personal level.”

The PPC coincided with hearings on legislation by State Rep. John Zerwas (R-Simonton) to establish a Texas health insurance exchange, a key element of federal health care reform. MS Activists took the opportunity to testify in support of Rep. Zerwas’s bill, which would allow Texas, rather than the federal government, to establish and administer an exchange.

 The 2011 Texas PPC provided an excellent opportunity for MS activists to come together and establish a strong foundation of skills and knowledge to draw from as they advocated for their legislative priorities during the remainder of the Texas legislative session.   Without a doubt, these Texas activists deserve credit for the successes achieved during the session, and have laid the groundwork for future accomplishments.  

The National MS Society and MS Activists were also proud to be recognized in the Texas Senate and House of Representatives. 

“It is my honor to welcome members of the National MS Society here today for MS Day at the Texas Capitol. These people volunteer their time and efforts to advance policies that will help those who suffer from this unpredictable and often debilitating disease. I know personally, as my wife has had multiple sclerosis for over 25 years.”

Senator Bob Deuell introduces his constituents and MS Activists on the Senate Floor on March 1, 2011

The dominating issue of the session was without a doubt the state’s budget and the $27 billion shortfall. The Texas Legislature ultimately decided to balance the budget by implementing deep budget cuts across state agencies, spending $4 billion out of  the state’s Rainy Day Fund for shortfalls in the current budget, and the use of state funds in “dedicated accounts” or funds that are collected for a particular purpose but remain unspent. Many Texans living with MS will be impacted as the state’s Medicaid and Community Based Services waiver programs implement utilization reviews, caps, service limitations and provider reimbursement rate cuts.  Also key to balancing the budget was the Legislature’s decision to leave an estimated $4.8 billion in Medicaid expected caseload growth unfunded until the beginning of the next legislative session in 2013. MS Activists will need to remain vigilant to ensure that this emergency appropriation is made at the start of the next regular session.

During the 2009 legislative session MS activists came forward to share their personal stories in support of family caregiver legislation. Activist Gary Campbell testified as one of 2.7 million unpaid, informal family caregivers in Texas who care for a loved one.   MS Activists successfully advocated for Family Caregiver Respite legislation, and in doing so helped create a program that allows middle income families to receive vouchers to pay for help in caring for their loved one at home.   In addition, legislators included $1 million to begin funding the respite program in pilot communities.

In February, Kim Campbell provided powerful testimony during Senate budget hearing in support of Home and Community Based services, and she highlighted the important role family caregivers have in allowing persons with a chronic illness to remain in their home. Thanks to Kim and Gary’s passion for advocacy, Texas’ Lifespan Respite Care Program’s $1 million appropriation was protected and remains intact. This legislative victory would be a huge feat during any session, but is particularly impressive during a difficult budget cycle.

As the Texas House prepared to begin debate on the House Bill 1, the appropriations bill, Society staff and MS Activists were surprised to learn of two amendments authored by State Rep. Jason Isaac (R-Dripping Springs) and State Rep. Raul Torres (R-Corpus Christi) that proposed defunding the Office of Public Insurance Counsel (OPIC).

During the last year, the Society and MS Activists have worked with OPIC on issues that are important to people living with MS.  The advocacy team quickly issued an Action Alert to MS Activists living in these House districts regarding their legislators efforts  to eliminate funding for OPIC and to share the detrimental effects this could have in our efforts to make insurance affordable and available to Texans living with a chronic illness.

Rep. Isaac and Rep. Torres ultimately withdrew their amendments. We are pleased that OPIC is no longer under direct threat of elimination and we’ll maintain our support for the agency’s continuation.  

In December of 2010, the Texas Department of Insurance (Department) issued a rule prohibiting the use of “discretionary clauses,” contract language that gave an insurance company the ability to unfairly deny benefits. This victory was a result of the leadership and tenacity by MS Activists Deborah & David Rankin, who brought the issue to the attention of the Office of Public Insurance Counsel, a state office that represents Texans on insurance matters at the Department.

David had first-hand experience with discretionary clauses, having been denied long-term disability benefits after his diagnosis in 2006. Deborah and David fought the insurance company in court and won, but they didn’t stop there. They were determined to make sure that no other family suffered the way theirs had. The Department’s decision to ban discretionary clauses in rule paved the way to legislation this session.

Impressed by the Rankin’s efforts at the Department, State Rep. John Smithee (R-Amarillo) filed House Bill 3017 to put the ban on discretionary clauses in Texas law.   The Rankins partnered with the Society to engage MS Activists in support of the legislation and to secure its passage, thereby protecting every Texas family from unfairly being denied insurance benefits.  

The Rankin’s provided key testimony in the House Insurance Committee hearing and issued a personal call to action to MS Activists across Texas.  In response, almost 200 MS Activists emailed their Representative in support of the bill.  David’s “Story Card”, that told of David’s experiences and his life with MS, also proved to be a powerful tool. During a Senate hearing, Senator Leticia Van de Putte (D-San Antonio) noted,

“This is a very compelling story of David Rankin. I would urge [members] to read over it. It tells you exactly why this bill is needed.”    

House Bill 3017 was sponsored in the Senate by Senator Robert Duncan (R-Lubbock), Chairman of the State Affairs Committee, and it was signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry on June 17th and became effective immediately.

“I want to thank the MS Society which brought this up. They have been very active in trying to chip away at these areas where we have some unfairness in our health plans and to try and resolve those issues so we can better serve our people better particularly the people that have these chronic problems.”

Representative John Smithee, Texas House Insurance Committee Chairman, brings HB 1405 up for a vote in Texas House on April 5, 2011.

Accessing prescription drugs is a daily challenge for many Texans with MS.  The high cost of co-pays, and increasingly co-insurance, are even more insurmountable during difficult economic times. It is essential that people with MS who have prescription drug coverage as part of their insurance policy be able to count on that coverage during the entire time of the contract period.

This Session, the Society worked with Rep. John Smithee, Chairman of the House Insurance Committee, to file House Bill 1405, legislation to prohibit mid-year increases to prescription co-pays and to provide advance notice of formulary change.   Representatives Craig Eiland (D-Galveston), Rick Hardcastle and Barbara Nash (R-Arlington) joined him as Joint-Authors of the bill.

As HB 1405 made its way through the legislative process, the MS Action Network gave hundreds of Texans living with MS the opportunity to communicate to legislators their experiences with high cost, disease-modifying and symptom management drugs. They explained how unexpected mid-year increases to co-pays can sometimes make it impossible to afford these critical medications.  

MS Activist Tracy Brinton was among those who testified before the House Insurance Committee and asked Representatives to help Texans living with a chronic illness to be able to budget for the cost of their medications by voting for HB 1405. Like many Texans with MS, Tracy works very hard to stick to her family's budget in order to make her monthly health insurance premiums and prescription drug co-insurance. Her testimony was a powerful tool in gaining the committee’s support for the bill and building momentum.

As passed by the Texas Legislature, House Bill 1405 maintains prescription drug coverage for the entire length of an enrollee’s contract and requires 60-day notice of any changes prior to the reenrollment period. It was sponsored in the Senate by Senator Bob Deuell (R-Greenville), Vice-Chair of the State Affairs Committee, and it was signed into law by Gov. Rick Perry on June 17^th and will become effective on September 1^st.

The National MS Society, Lonestar has strong partnerships with many of Texas’ leading advocacy groups, including the Disability Policy Consortium, the Coalition of Texans with Disabilities, the Center for Public Policy Priorities, and the AARP. Together we work to provide a voice for Texans living with chronic illness and disabilities in many policy areas, including health insurance reform better access to long term care services and supports.

The National MS Society, Lonestar will continue to support efforts to: 

Many small business owners offered their support for the bill.   Howard Adams, who operates a business in Lubbock, said after he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, his business’ health insurance premium jumped to $74,300 a year. “It was a hardship on me to have to pay twice the insurance,” he said.

“It was a hardship on my employees because they can’t buy insurance through the company.”MS Activist Howard Adams quoted in Texas Tribune “Lawmakers Want State, Not Federal, Insurance Connector”  March 1, 2011 

During the Session, the Society participated in the Cover Texas Now coalition, a group of organizations that supported the creation of a health insurance exchange in Texas. We worked together to make sure that any legislation adopted functioned with transparency so that affordable health care would be easily accessible for all Texans, especially those living with a disability.

MS Activists Howard Adams and Tracy Brinton and South Central Executive Vice President Mark Neagli provided testimony before the House Insurance Committee in support of House Bill 636 by Rep. John Zerwas. This legislation would have created the Texas Health Care Connector, or state health insurance exchange. As envisioned by the Affordable Care Act, the exchange would allow individuals and small employers to shop for affordable health coverage. Health plans in the exchange would have to offer a stated set of benefits and the exchange would give Texans information allowing them to easily compare price and coverage options between the plans. Unfortunately, HB 636 did not pass.

The Society will closely monitor efforts currently underway at the Texas Department of Insurance to implement a state-run health insurance exchange. As outlined in the Affordable Care Act, States have until 2014 to do so at which time the federal government will step-in if individual states have failed to take action. The Society supports a state-run health insurance exchange that allows Texans to shop for a health insurance policy that meets their needs and budget.

This session, the AARP worked with State Rep. Ryan Guillen (D-Rio Grande City) to file House Bill 329, legislation that would have created one pilot site to test a comprehensive access point for long term care services. In the pilor area, seniors and people with disabilities would be screened to determine if they are likely to be eligible for assistance with community care services. The goal would then be to get community care services started quicklyso that seniors and people with disabilities who are in urgent need of long term care have alternatives to more costly facility settings. The Society supported the AARP’s efforts this session and although HB 329 did not pass, we will

What Now? 

The work to identify legislative priorities for 2013 begins today. As a person affected by MS, what other issues matter to you? Tell us here. http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/26GX23F

For more information on the priority issues in this email, please visit our website.

Connect! Visit MS Activist Texas on Flickr to view photos of MS activists in action. You can also visit our Facebook and YouTube pages to share your experiences, photos, and videos.

Want to join our movement at the Texas Capitol? Your story can make a difference!
Contact your National MS Society Advocacy Team, Mireya Zapata, at (512) 340-2703 or mireya.zapata@nmss.org