***MULTIMEDIA PACKAGE*** Conaway, Chivukula on Enactment of 'Grace's Law' (A-1571)

CONAWAY ISSUES MULTIMEDIA PACKAGE ON ENACTMENT OF 'GRACE'S LAW'

New Law Mandates Insurance Companies Provide Coverage for Hearing Aids for Children

(TRENTON) - Assemblyman Herb Conaway, M.D. today issued a multimedia package on the enactment of legislation he and Assembly Speaker Joseph J. Roberts, Jr. sponsored to require health insurance plans provide coverage for hearing aids for children 15-years-old and younger.

The bill (A-1571), dubbed "Grace's Law" in honor of Grace Gleba, a New Jersey girl with a severe hearing impairment, was signed into law today by acting Gov. Richard J. Codey in a public ceremony in the Governor's Outer Office.

Nearly 10 percent of New Jersey's public school children have either a hearing problem or hearing loss. Many insurance providers cover the cost of annual hearing tests, but few cover purchasing hearing aids - even when the device is deemed medically necessary.

The multimedia package consists of a video press release of the bill signing, audio of same and a transcript of comments Assembly participants.

The video can be accessed directly via our Web site - www.assemblydems.com - or by clicking here.

The audio is available upon request.

Comments from the sponsors and participants are appended below:

Speaker Joseph J. Roberts, Jr. (D-Camden):

"The treatment of hearing loss in children with hearing aids is not a luxury.  It's unimaginable that insurers can effectively deny hearing-impaired children the opportunity to learn to hear, speak and communicate like everyone else."

Assemblyman Herb Conaway, M.D. (D-Burlington):

"This, as has been said, will give the gift of sound to so many children across the state of New Jersey who suffer hearing impairment. As many as 10 percent of the children in our school system have some kind of hearing loss, and we know that that hearing impairment directly impacts their ability to learn in school."

Assemblyman Upendra J. Chivukula (D-Somerset):

"Having the insurance companies go out and have that benefit, I think it's an important thing, and I want to commend Speaker Roberts, Assemblyman Conaway, for sponsoring this in the Assembly."

Conaway:

"So I see this bill as a progression. It's important for families, and I also think of it as an important insurance for parents. It's about a dime a month to do this. How many folks wouldn't say, 'Oh, but for the grace of God go I. It's a dime a month, a few pennies. Is that important insurance for myself and my family? I think so.'"

On the Net:
www.assemblydems.com
www.youtube.com/user/njassemblydems
New Jersey Assembly Democrats on Facebook