ACCESS TO CONTRACEPTION AND ABORTION IN ILLINOIS October 7, 2015 - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation
ACCESS TO CONTRACEPTION AND ABORTION IN ILLINOIS October 7, 2015 Kathy Waligora, EverThrive Illinois Mara Gandal- Powers, National Womens Law Center Lorie Chaiten, ACLU of Illinois Welcome! Goals for today: REVIEW policy successes
October 7, 2015 Kathy Waligora, EverThrive Illinois Mara Gandal-Powers, National Women’s Law Center Lorie Chaiten, ACLU of Illinois
http://familyplanning.uchicago.edu/policy/conferences/
Goals for today:
REVIEW policy successes regarding contraception and abortion since the
IDENTIFY opportunities to become involved in efforts to advance access to family planning services
We will answer as many
questions during the webinar as possible.
A recorded copy of the webinar
will be posted on EverThrive IL’s website in the coming days: http://everthriveil.org/resources/ starting-strong-webinars
Mara Gandal- Powers, Counsel National Women’s Law Center October 2015
FEDERAL LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY
Legislative attacks on Planned Parenthood and abortion providers Federal Budget Proactive Legislative Activity
FEDERAL ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIVITY
April 2015 reports on ACA coverage violations May 2015 HHS/DOL/Treasury Guidance on the Preventive Services (FAQs XXVI) Administration finalized the post-Hobby Lobby regulations creating a “for-profit accommodation” Continuing advocacy related to contraception
www.nwlc.org/stateofcoverage
COVERHER HOTLINE
FAQs about the health care law’s birth control coverage requirement What plans are and are not allowed to do around cost-sharing How to find out if a plan should be covering birth control without cost- sharing Appeal letters for insurance companies: instructions and sample letters
UPCOMING SUPREME COURT ACTIVITY
Contraceptive Coverage Cases
profits
with SCOTUS; DOJ filed brief last week asking SCOTUS to consider the issue but that the DC Circuit case (Roman Catholic Archbishop of Washington v. Burwell) was most appropriate to consider
Abortion Cases
admitting privileges requirements)
privileges requirement)
Lorie Chaiten Director, Reproductive Rights Project ACLU of Illinois lchaiten@aclu-il.org
OVERVIEW
Current focus on budget impasse Challenging political environment affecting ability to move initiatives forward Moving legislative efforts forward
Problem:
Health Care Right of Conscience Act
Solution:
Senate Bill 1564 amends the HCRCA Incorporates patient protections into the Act
Main opposition to the bill
State Medical Society Catholic Health Association Catholic Conference
Support
Illinois ACOG Illinois Academy of Family Physicians Many others
Compelling use of patient stories and press coverage
Mindy Swank Angela Valavanis
Passed out of Senate in March of 2015 Negotiated amendment to bring main opponents to neutral
Ensures patients get standard of care information Requires transfer, referral OR information about others who might be able to step in and provide information and care
Continuing Opposition
Crisis Pregnancy Centers AUL and other abortion opponents
Passed House Committee and is ripe for a vote on the House Floor
What next? Help us collect more stories Visit: http://www.aclu- il.org/put-patients-first- initiative-to-stop-the-use-of- religion-to-deny-health-care/
Problem:
Abortion discriminatory language in Illinois Public Aid Code Failure of Illinois Medicaid program to fulfill the promise of covering all “medically necessary” abortions Inadequate reimbursement rates and timing
Legislative Step:
Amend to remove abortion discriminatory language
Additional advocacy needed:
Need to clarify patient rights under Medicaid program Need to improve reimbursement rates and timing
Removes abortion discriminatory language from Illinois Public Aid Code Passed out of House Committee What next?
Illinois does not restrict abortion coverage in private plans Private insurance companies voluntarily importing Hyde restrictions Illinois EHB Benchmark Plan
Kathy Waligora, EverThrive Illinois
PROBLEM Explanations of Benefits (EOB) may
compromise right to privacy for dependents
SOLUTION Legislation which suppresses the
sending of an EOB for sensitive services
Family planning services Mental health care Substance abuse services
Medicaid managed care
HB2812 ensures that Medicaid health plans do
not send EOBs for sensitive services
Approved by General Assembly and signed
into law by Governor Rauner
Private health insurance
Legislation introduced in 2014 session
Illinois Family Planning Action Plan (IFPAP)
GOAL: Increase access to family planning service for
women and men in the Medicaid program by providing comprehensive and continuous coverage to ensure that every pregnancy is a planned pregnancy
Reimbursement Research Communication
Working with Medicaid plans Changes to policies and reimbursement
Provider notice on 11/10/14 outlining increased
reimbursement for certain services
Provider notice on 06/30/15 implementing policy change
allowing immediate post-partum LARC placement
http://www2.illinois.gov/hfs/FamilyPlanning/Pages/Submit.aspx
Evaluated coverage of
contraception and abortion coverage in plans available through the health insurance Marketplace
Assessed transparency regarding
benefits
Discussed coverage policies and
consumer education with carriers
Released a report which analyzed
findings and issued recommendations for improving coverage
http://everthriveil.org/resources/insurance-coverage-family-planning-services
Nearly all plans are compliant with
ACA requirement for contraceptive coverage as clarified by HHS in May
5 of 8 carriers restrict abortion
coverage to instances of rape, incest, or threat to the life of the woman
Access to information regarding
family planning services and clarity
plans
Information regarding waiver
processes is nearly impossible to find
If you have knowledge of a woman who was unable to review
insurance coverage (either public or private) and/or received partial coverage for contraception and/or abortion services WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU!
Looking for specific examples of barriers to contraception and
abortion experienced by women in IL
Stories collected will be added to a database
No personally identifiable information is required to share a story You should share stories from your recollection and do not need to consult
medical records
If you have a story to share, email Kathy Waligora, kwaligora@everthriveil.org
shared on the EverThrive IL website in the coming days