Sunday, June 03, 2012

Cigna rejecting ABA as 'experimental' same day as US Govt says it isn't

I've been working with our insurance provider for a couple of years to get Christopher's ABA therapy covered. They finally decided last month that they wouldn't cover it. Official statement:

As we discussed, ABA is not covered under the plan for any indication because it is considered experimental, investigational or unproven.


Same day as the rejection, the US Government decided that ABA is NOT experimental and  is medical:


Autism Speaks hailed today’s announcement by the federal government, the nation’s largest employer, that Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), the most widely used behavioral intervention used to treat autism, is a “medical” therapy that qualifies for health insurance coverage, rather than an “educational” service.

So I'm going to talk to Cigna about changing their view, since the Government disagrees with them!


References:


Autism Votes: http://www.autismvotes.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=frKNI3PCImE&b=3930723&ct=11775907

ABA: http://www.autismspeaks.org/what-autism/treatment/applied-behavior-analysis-aba

Cigna: http://www.cigna.com/