New Study Shines Light Directly on Lives Being Impacted by Michigan’s Devastating Auto Insurance Law
Judd: ‘How many more lives need to be lost?’
BRIGHTON, Mich.—(Sept. 28, 2022)—The latest study by MPHI shines a light directly on the lives being impacted by the draconian fee schedule that slashes reimbursement rates for essential rehabilitation and care services by nearly 50%.
“Objective data showing the impact on the ability for rehabilitation and care companies to provide services, combined with the objective data on the various impacts this law has had on individuals and families should be enough to move our legislative leaders to take action quickly to end the crisis in care,” said Tom Judd, executive director of the Michigan Brain Injury Provider Council (MBIPC). “This study puts a spotlight on lives that have been turned upside down, and some lives lost, due to the legislature’s refusal to fix the law responsible for the turmoil.”
The report by MPHI, which documents the impact of the law on 498 unique crash survivors through two rounds of online surveys indicates that there is a “universal reduction from before July 1, 2021 to Spring 2022 across all categories of health needs addressed, level of care provided, rehab services received, and other services/products/accommodations received.” The first two phases of the study demonstrated the impact of nearly 7,000 discharges and over 4,000 healthcare jobs lost.
“Nobody elected our legislature to reform our no-fault system at the expense of the rehabilitation and care catastrophically injured crash victims need and paid for,” Judd said. “This study not only further illustrates the loss of services people are experiencing and the personal anguish that leads to, but it also shows the collateral damage to society with more people being added to the Medicaid system and less people being able to maintain productive employment.”
The study found that since July 1, 2021, of the 498 responses:
78% of respondents reported a loss of services
Nearly 10% of respondents have been hospitalized 1 to 8 times, directly related to loss of services brought on by no fault reform
Over 1/3 of respondents reported an impact in their rehabilitation progress, increased medical needs, and/or increased behavioral needs
6 deaths were reported
Of the respondents who responded to both rounds of surveys:
20% of respondents have applied for Medicaid assistance
43% fewer patients are able to maintain full-time employment, as they have no one to get them up, groomed and transported to work, or remain there to toilet them
The study was commissioned by the Brain Injury Association of Michigan (BIAMI), a social impact nonprofit dedicated to improving the lives of those affected by brain injury.
“We are just over a year into the implementation of this new system and the devastation has been chronicled. It will only get worse for individuals as more providers are forced to shut their doors to car crash victims because the reimbursement for their services is less than cost of care,” Judd said. “How many more lives need to be lost? How many more people need to suffer unnecessarily? All that is required is a narrow legislative action to implement a reasonable reimbursement system that restores the continuum of care that crash victims are promised with every premium dollar they pay. This suffering can stop – but it is up to our elected officials to make it happen.”
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Members of the Michigan Brain Injury Provider Council are committed to providing high quality, ethical rehabilitation services, with the mission of achieving the best outcomes for patients. As a trade association established in 1987 and based in Brighton, Michigan, MBIPC offers resource-sharing, information exchange, professional development and education, advocacy for brain injury standards of care and legislation protecting Michigan families, and the promotion of ethical conduct.