Letter to the editor: Better coverage for asthma sufferers

When you can’t breathe, nothing else matters.

Patients with asthma need access to quality and affordable health care to obtain the medications and treatments necessary to manage their disease and live a healthy life.

Medicaid is an especially important program for asthma patients, as half of all kids with asthma in the United States get their health insurance coverage through Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).

The American Lung Association urges the Pennsylvania General Assembly’s newest members to make improving health care in the commonwealth a top priority this new session.

Pennsylvania’s Medical Assistance program needs to improve its coverage so that people with asthma can breathe easier. Pennsylvania doesn’t cover treatments doctors recommend, including providing consistent coverage of long-term controller medications, which includes barriers such as prior authorizations and step therapy limitations. The General Assembly should work to close these gaps during the 2019 legislative session.

Learn more about Medicaid coverage in Pennsylvania by visiting lung.org/asthma-care-coverage.

Sarah Lawver

Harrisburg