Banner Health has changed its employee health plan to include coverage for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), a form of treatment for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). This matter was brought to the organization’s attention by the Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest.
Though the change became effective July 1, 2017, Banner will also consider requests for reimbursement of the expenses that its employees paid out of pocket for ABA previous to this plan year. Banner, in resolution of a related lawsuit, will be providing a notice of claims process to current and former plan members who submitted a claim or claims where ASD was listed as one of the patient’s diagnoses.
Noting that Banner Health is the largest private employer in Arizona and third largest employer in the Northern Colorado Front Range Area, Anne Ronan, an attorney for the Arizona Center for Law in the Public Interest, commended Banner Health. “We are pleased to have worked with Banner Health during this process and applaud it for providing this important benefit to its employees and their children diagnosed with autism. We hope this serves as an example to other employers. And we will continue our efforts to get employers with self-funded health plans to cover ABA.”
