Is there a difference in state laws? You bet
Here’s the problem with allowing the insurance companies to sell policies nationally:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/16/insurance-runs-out-for-12_n_359920.html
Benjamin French, 12, was born with no arm below his right elbow. He needs new prosthetic arms as he grows, but the insurance company in Michigan won’t pay for it because he has used up his lifetime limit of $30,000 for prosthetic devices.
As any amputee can tell you, that cap is completely inadequate. But Michigan allows it. Many other states d0n’t let the insurance companies get away with that, but Michigan does.
If we allow insurance companies to sell across state lines, we’ll have a “race to the bottom,” as the big companies rush to headquarter themselves in the state with the most lax legislation.
How do you think all the credit card companies wound up in Wilmington, Del.? That’s why we have 30 percent interest rates and countless other abuses.
If we want to reform health care, we have to stop giving the insurance companies what they want in “reform.”
If we’re going to allow sales across state lines, we have to use interstate commerce laws to regulate insurance nationally, and the regulations must have good, sharp teeth.
Second annual Eat at Mike’s
Reserve now
Life o' Mike sponsors its second annual Eat at Mike's, an evening of good food prepared by local chefs, at Tingles Cafe in downtown Asheville. The event also features silent and live auctions with items from Highlands Brewing, artist Angela C. Alexander and more.
Tickets to the dinner are $25; $20 for children 3-12 and free for children under 3.
To reserve, e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com. For more information, call 828-243-6712.
Patient Pals & Family Friends
Life o' Mike has a new peer support program for people newly diagnosed with chronic or serious illness or with a new disability and their caregivers.
Patient Pals are people who have experience with various illnesses and disabilities, who can help someone newly diagnosed or with a new disability work through the fear, frustration, confusion and grief often experienced in the first few months.
Family Friends are there to help caregivers and other family members grow into their new role.
People with new illness or disability fare better when they have a role model -- someone who can help them negotiate their new path in life.
We need volunteers, who are asked to donate a minimum of one hour a week. Training is free and includes information on active listening, ways to help and when to know more help is needed.
And of course, we need funding.
To learn more, call Leslie Boyd at 828-243-6712 or e-mail lifeomike@gmail.com.
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