During Clinton's 1996 administration, the president introduced the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The basic idea behind the Act was to end discrimination against individuals with pre-existing medical conditions by employers. While the final rules enacted in 2001 prevent denial of health care coverage to anyone participating in any recognized legal activity, such as motorcycling, a loophole in the Act permits denial of benefits despite the right to coverage. Under the current legislation, a motorcyclist has the right to coverage but may be denied the benefits of the coverage despite payment of premiums if the motorcyclist's injuries were sustained while riding the motorcycle.
Two new bills, H.R. 1076 and S. 616, the HIPAA Recreational Injury Technical Correction Act attempt to close this loophole and end the discrimination against motorcyclists with pre-existing injuries. Requests to representatives and senators can be sent via email or in print from the AMA's website.
The injuries I sustained in "the crash of '05" will likely haunt me for the remainder of my natural life. Considering that the damage was caused by a kid in a car speeding through a stop sign at twenty over the posted limit, I'm against the notion that I may have to keep footing the bill for someone else's negligence. Especially when taking into account I'm a motorcyclist with high levels of insurance coverage who dutifully pays his premiums. Frankly, that's a notion that I, or anyone in my position, can not afford.
