HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 2143 FILED ON: 12/29/2008
HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3598
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
PRESENTED BY:
John W. Scibak
_______________
To the Honorable Senate and House of
Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:
The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the passage of the accompanying bill:
An Act to provide coverage for hearing aids.
_______________
PETI
TION OF:
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Name:
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District/Address:
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John W. Scibak
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2nd Hampshire
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Harriette L. Chandler
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First Worcester
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Martha M. Walz
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8th Suffolk
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Christine E. Canavan
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10th Plymouth
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Robert M. Koczera
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11th Bristol
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Michael R. Knapik
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Second Hampden and Hampshire
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Steven
J. D'Amico
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4th Bristol
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Anne M. Gobi
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5th Worcester
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Allen J. McCarthy
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7th Plymouth
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Jennifer L. Flanagan
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Worcester and Middlesex
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Jennifer M. Callahan
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18th Worcester
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Thomas P. Conroy
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13th Middlesex
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Tom Sannicandro
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7th Middlesex
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Walter F. Timilty
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7th
Norfolk
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Stephen M. Brewer
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Worcester, Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin
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Mary E. Grant
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6th Essex
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Carlo P. Basile
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1st Suffolk
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James J. O'Day
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14th Worcester District
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Martin J. Walsh
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13th Suffolk
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Christopher G. Fallon
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33rd Middlesex
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Louis L. Kafka
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8th
Norfolk
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Harold P. Naughton, Jr.
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12th Worcester
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[SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION
SEE HOUSE, NO. 2239 OF .]
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
_______________
In the Year Two Thousand and Nine
_______________
An Act to provide coverage for
hearing aids..
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
Chapter 118E of the General Laws, as appearing in the 2004 Official
Edition, is hereby amended by
inserting after section 9C the following section:-
S
ection 9D
.
(
a)
Definitions
.
As used in the section:
(
i
)
“Hearing Aid” shall mean any wearable, non-disposable instrument or device designed to aid or compensate for impaired or diminished
human hearing; and any part, attachments, or accessories including earmolds but excluding batteries.
In the event that any part of this definition conflicts with the definition of a hearing aid in section 196 of chapter 112 of the General Laws, this defi
nition will take precedent for the purposes of this section.
(ii)
“Related services” shall mean those services n
ecessary to assess, select, and
appropriately adjust or fit the hearing aid to ensure optimal performance.
(b)
A he
alth benefit plan shall provide coverage, subject to all applicable co-payments, coinsurance, deductibles, and out-of-pocket limits, for the full cost of one hearing aid per hearing impaired ear, every 36 months for insured individuals, and all related ser
vices which shall be prescribed by an audiologist or a hearing instrument specialist as defined in section 196 of chapter 12 of the General Laws, and dispensed by an audiologist or a hearing instrument specialist as defined in said section.
(c)
A health benefit plan shall not be required to pay a claim filed by its insured for payment of the cost of a hearing aid under the coverage required by subsection (2) of this section if less than 3 years prior to the date of the claim its i
nsured filed a claim for payment of cost of a hearing aid under the required coverage and the claim was paid by any health benefit plan.
