[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 75 (Wednesday, June 8, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1162]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         THE HIPAA RECREATIONAL INJURY TECHNICAL CORRECTION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. MICHAEL C. BURGESS

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 8, 2005

  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to join my colleagues 
Congressman Blunt and Congressman Strickland in introducing legislation 
that would prohibit insurers from denying payment to health plan 
participants for injuries sustained while engaged in certain 
recreational activities like horseback riding or motorcycling.
  In January 2001, the Department of Labor, the Internal Revenue 
Service and the Health Care Financing Administration, issued a rule in 
accordance to the Health Insurance and Portability and Accountability 
Act of 1996 (HIPAA) that was designed to guard against discrimination 
in coverage in the group health market. These rules prohibited health 
plans from denying coverage to people who engage in recreational 
activities like horseback riding and motorcycling. However a loophole 
was created that allowed insurers to deny payment for services based 
upon the source of the injury.
  The rule states that: ``While a person cannot be excluded from a plan 
for engaging in certain recreational activities, benefits for a 
particular injury can, in some cases, be excluded based on the source 
of the injury.'' A plan could, for example, include a general exclusion 
for injuries sustained while doing a specified list of recreational 
activities, even though treatment for those injuries, a broken arm for 
instance, would have been covered under the plan if the individual had 
tripped and fallen.
  This loophole creates a situation that is especially unfair to people 
who ride motorcycles, horses, snowmobiles, or any other form of 
motorized recreation. Millions of Americans enjoy these activities 
safely every year within the framework of state laws and utilizing 
proper safety precautions. Should something extraordinary occur 
resulting in an injury, these individuals deserve the same 
consideration when it comes to their medical expenses as every other 
American. They should not be denied payment for health services for the 
mere fact that the injury occurred on horseback or on a motorcycle.
  The legislation that we are introducing today will remove any 
ambiguity when it comes to participation in certain recreational 
activities or modes of transportation should an injury occur. I want to 
thank Mr. Blunt and Mr. Strickland for joining me on this legislation. 
I look forward to working with them along with the multitude of groups 
that have made this legislation such a high priority, especially the 
American Motorcyclist Association and the Motorcycle Industry Council. 
I urge all of our colleagues to join us as cosponsors and stand with 
America's riders.

                          ____________________