FARE Letter to Congress on Graham-Cassidy Bill
The Honorable Mitch McConnell
Majority Leader
United States Senate
S-230 US Capitol Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
The Honorable Charles Schumer
Democratic Leader
United States Senate
S-221 US Capitol Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
The Honorable Paul Ryan
Speaker
United States House of Representatives
H-232 US Capitol Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Minority Leader
United States House of Representatives
H-204 US Capitol Building
Washington, D.C. 2051
Dear Senators McConnell and Schumer, Speaker Ryan and Leader Pelosi:
Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE) is the leading advocacy organization working on behalf of the 15 million Americans with food allergies. In May, I wrote to Congress to express FARE’s concern about healthcare costs and legislative changes that could limit coverage for pre-existing conditions. We are particularly concerned about healthcare costs for people living with and managing lifelong food allergies. FARE believes that the Graham-Cassidy legislation raises similar concerns.
We oppose any healthcare legislation that could result in coverage denials or unaffordable premiums for children and adults with chronic, life-threatening food allergies that could be considered pre-existing conditions. Therefore, we are concerned that the new legislation’s waiver provisions could allow states to impose coverage limits or increase premiums for these individuals. The waiver process could result in unpredictable changes to levels of insurance coverage, premiums, and benefit design, and that could significantly impact the lives of food allergy patients.
As you and your colleagues work on this critical legislation, we strongly encourage you to ensure that our patient community has access to necessary chronic disease management on all insurance options and these benefits are not subject to price discrimination through unaffordable insurance premiums.
I would be happy to discuss any of these issues with you or your staff. Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
James R. Baker, Jr., MD
Chief Executive Officer
Cc: Senators Lindsey Graham, Bill Cassidy, Dean Heller, Ron Johnson
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About FARE
FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) is the nation’s leading non-profit engaged in food allergy advocacy and the largest food allergy charity supporting research. FARE’s innovative education, advocacy and research initiatives transform the future of food allergy through new and improved treatments and prevention strategies, effective policies and legislation, and novel approaches to managing the disease. To learn more, visit: foodallergy.org.