Senate Republicans urge state to add hearing aid coverage for kids to state’s health benefits benchmark plan
California Senate Republicans are urging the state’s Department of Managed Health Care to add a Hearing Exam and Hearing Aids benefit as part of the state’s essential health benefits benchmark plan, which is in the process of being updated.
Click here to read Senate Republicans letter to Mary Watanabe, director of the California Department of Managed Health Care.
The benefit would include hearing aid coverage for middle-class children, something that low-income children already receive through Medi-Cal or the California Children’s Services programs.
Next Tuesday, the Senate and Assembly Health Committees will hold a joint informational hearing to discuss the new EHB benchmark plan, which Senate Republicans are advocating to be updated in their request.
State Senator Suzette Martinez Valladares.“Senate Republicans acknowledge that there are many valuable benefits under consideration, and not all can be included,” said Sen. Suzette Martinez Valladares, vice chair of the Health Committee and a co-signer of the letter to the DMHC. “However, we believe that hearing aid coverage for children is a critical quality-of-life issue. Hearing aid benefits for children who need them will significantly improve their ability to function both at home and in school, making it a worthy and necessary priority that should take precedence.”
The federal Affordable Care Act establishes EHBs, but states have discretion in selecting their benchmark plan, which, as the name suggests, sets the benchmark for all the benefit packages offered on Covered CA for individual and small group coverage. Once DMHC has determined the new EHB benchmark plan, the proposal is sent to the federal government for final approval.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, left, and Senator Shannon Grove.“This is a critical issue for thousands of children and it will have a meaningful impact on their quality of life,” said Sen. Shannon Grove, who also signed the letter. “For years, Senate Republicans have been asking to support these children in the budget process, and it is time for California to get this done.”
“The absence of a solution is not only devastating to the child and family, it is costing California hundreds of millions of dollars annually,” said Michelle Marciniak, Founder of Let California Kids Hear. “It is time for California to prioritize the needs of deaf and hard-of-hearing children by updating our state’s benchmark health plan to include hearing aid coverage. While 34 other states have taken action on this pediatric health equity issue, California continues to lag behind. Families are forced to shoulder an overwhelming financial burden, delaying or even forgoing critical early intervention—an outcome that can carry lifelong consequences.”
Why is this issue important to Senate Republicans?
LAO Report reveals that California spends more than $400 million on special education services for 14,000 deaf and hard of hearing students: lao.ca.gov/publications/report/3498
More than 30 states require private coverage of children’s aids. California is not on the list. (source: Children Now)
Report from CHBRP showing more than 20,000 California children and youth would benefit from a hearing aid coverage requirement. (source: shorturl.at/cTuHE).
About Senator Suzette Martinez Valladares
Senator Suzette Martinez Valladares represents the 23rd Senate District, serving communities in the Santa Clarita Valley, the Antelope Valley, and the Victor Valley. She is the first Republican Latina to serve in both the Assembly and the Senate.
About Senator Shannon Grove
Senator Shannon Grove represents California’s 12th Senate District which encompasses large portions of Fresno, Kern, Tulare counties.
