The latest updates on the legislative review of Michigan’s auto no-fault policy (sponsored by Mich. Senators Joseph Hune and Virgil Smith) are expected for announcement after Labor Day.
The system has been under review since March, when two Senate bills, 293 and 294, were introduced in the Michigan Senate and referred to the Senate Committee on Insurance.
Under the bills, personal injury protection will be most affected. Insurance companies claim drivers could save 15 percent ($62/month) on premiums, but the concern of lost jobs and higher taxes is overwhelming.
If bill 293 is passed, Michigan drivers could purchase PIP benefits for as low as $50,000—a fraction of the coverage needed for catastrophic accidents.
“It’s just not enough,” said Christopher Biek, an Eastern Michigan University student of social work and employee of the Eisenhower Center said.
Working at the rehabilitation facility in Ann Arbor and surviving a severe auto accident five years ago has made Biek realize the cost of individualized personal care.
“The ambulance bills alone for my accident were $16,000, but the insurance covered it,” Biek, who suffered minor injuries, said. “Most of our patients have brain injuries. And if the laws were passed, they’d be on the streets. It’s too expensive.”
Medical providers serving clients of serious injury with inadequate PIP benefit limits would no longer be able to provide services. Those clients would be forced to turn to Medicaid, Medicare or health insurance unless receiving benefits from the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association fund—an account supporting only its contributors—is an option.
Biek, like the other Eisenhower Center employees, is concerned the loss in medical services could result in a significant loss of jobs in the health care industry and a reduction in access to necessary medical care. There are already talks of his company cutting a third of its 340 employees.
“Not only will it hurt the people who live and work at these facilities, but it will also put a much higher burden on our economy and possibly our prison systems,” he said. “Many people will lose the care they need and turn to welfare programs and/or crime.”
Other changes under bill Bill 293 include increases to litigation, leaving many consumers with no choice but to buy higher liability insurance protection which could ultimately raise insurance
premiums.
Senate Bill 294 would introduce two kinds of pay caps to patients with in-home care provided by either family or commercial agencies and hospitals.
According to the Coalition Protecting Auto No-Fault (CPAN), a ‘weekly hours’ cap would limit payment for in-home attendant care and nursing services to no more than 56 hours per week if performed by an individual who is not certified, registered or licensed to render such care.
An ‘hourly rate’ cap would limit payment for in-home care performed by an individual who is not certified, registered or licensed to render such care to no more than $11 per hour for “basic care” and no more than $17 per hour for “skilled care.”
CPAN is a sponsored organization fighting bills 293 and 294. Recently, it conducted a poll and found the majority of Michigan voters are against the changes.
The poll found that out of 600 voters, 62 percent oppose limits on the amount of medical and rehabilitation care an accident victim could receive from their auto insurer; 27 percent support limits on medical and rehabilitation benefits and 11 percent were unsure. Of those opposed to limiting medical and rehabilitation auto injury benefits, 43 percent indicated strong opposition.
Biek stated the employees of the Eisenhower Center reference CPAN often.
“I wouldn’t have known about it (the legislative review) if I didn’t work where I do,” Biek said. “People at Eastern either don’t have a clue or don’t really care because they think it won’t affect them. Congress is trying to keep it hush-hush.”
Talk-backs with senators, letters to Congress and posts on social websites are forms Biek and his employees are encouraging others to participate in better education on the policy changes. Until a change is made, Michigan will remain one of seven states with an auto no-fault policy.
