LANSING — The Insurance Alliance of Michigan (IAM) today blasted CPAN and Rep. Doug Wozniak, R-Shelby Township, for introducing House Bill 5858, which would upend the historic reforms to Michigan’s auto no-fault law, which are scheduled to take effect next month.
The bill would allow brain injury clinics — many of which are represented by CPAN — to continue the same unscrupulous overcharging they have done for decades under the state’s broken, outdated auto no-fault system.
“It’s disappointing Rep. Wozniak chose to side with special interests and upend the bipartisan auto no-fault reform effort before it has a chance to work for his constituents and drivers across the state,” said IAM Executive Director Erin McDonough. “It’s critical for the Legislature to allow these reforms, which were passed with bipartisan support, to take effect so these changes can benefit consumers now and in the future.”
Under Rep. Wozniak and CPAN’s legislation, brain injury clinics would be able to continue charging outrageous amounts for medical procedures. Before Michigan’s new auto no-fault law was passed last year, these clinics were routinely charging three- and four-times more for medical procedures if someone was injured in a car accident. The new law reined in that overcharging by creating a fee schedule for medical services.
According to a blistering investigative report from the Detroit Free Press, an MRI at a medical clinic in Metro Detroit cost $500 under Medicare, but the same MRI at the same facility and with the same type of machine will cost an auto insurer $5,300.
When the Michigan Catastrophic Claims Association announced last year the per-vehicle fee charged to drivers would decrease to $100 for those choosing unlimited lifetime medical benefits and $0 for those choosing other levels of coverage, it cited expected savings from the medical fee schedule as the main catalyst for the decrease.
“We urge lawmakers in both parties to let these reforms work and push back on special interests, like CPAN, that want to turn the clock back on these historic reforms and allow gouging by certain medical providers at a time when Michigan families can least afford it,” McDonough said.
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