Originally published February 7 2006
Insurance law being considered in New Hampshire owes its life to a young victim of colon cancer
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Yahoo News relates the story of Michelle Morse, whose death from colon cancer at age 22 has contributed to growing support for a law, soon to be voted on in New Hampshire, that would require insurance companies to cover college students under their parents' plans even while on a medical leave of absence from school.
In the months before colon cancer took her life, aspiring teacher Michelle Morse attended Plymouth State University full-time, often wearing a chemotherapy pump on her hip to class or when she did her student teaching.
By the time she died in November at 22, Morse had become a reluctant celebrity, lending her name to a bill aimed at sparing others the tough decision she faced.
"Michelle's Law" would require health insurance companies that cover college students under their parents' plans to continue the coverage if a student takes a medical leave of absence.
Other states have taken a broader approach by allowing young adults to remain on their parents' plans longer, regardless of whether they are in college.
Thirty percent of Americans in that age group had no health insurance in 2003, according to a report issued in December by the National Center for Health Statistics.
New York, which already has a law like the one proposed in New Hampshire, is considering raising the maximum age for dependents from 23 to 25.
Such laws will not solve the larger problem but are a good stopgap measure, said Trudy Lieberman, director of the Center for Consumer Health Choices at Consumers Union, which publishes Consumers Reports.
The insurance industry generally hasn't opposed such changes because, aside from expensive cases like Morse's, carriers are getting paid higher family-plan premiums to cover the healthiest segment of the population, said New Hampshire state Rep.
Schwarzenegger said the bill would hurt employers already struggling to afford the rising costs of health care and could lead to higher premiums.
He also said the bill might have actually reduced the number of young adults with coverage if it prompted employers to stop offering family plans.
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