Missourians with chronic illness need insurance help. This bill would bring relief | Opinion
Access to affordable health care is not just a policy choice — it’s a matter of human dignity. We stand at a pivotal moment where a simple legislative action could reduce some of the burdens that countless Missourians like me face every day while battling chronic illnesses.
Passing Senate Bill 844 would be a critical step to ensure more people in our state can afford the health care we need to improve our quality of life
I have lived with Sjogren’s syndrome, ankylosing spondylitis and osteoarthritis for much of my life, so I am deeply familiar with the high costs required to keep these illnesses and my health stable. Even while I held private health coverage, 10 to 15% of my income went to copays, insurance premiums and medications.
What’s worse is the labyrinth of obstacles I’ve encountered in accessing appropriate care. Capricious insurance policies often left the treatments I desperately needed out of reach. Instead, insurers would approve other medications for me that would lead to debilitating side effects and excruciating pain.
My story is not unique. More than 1.7 million adults in Missouri have arthritis. Too many of them are forced to choose between paying the exorbitant out-of-pocket costs for their medications or affording other necessities such as rent and groceries. Health plans increasingly use copay accumulator adjustment programs that prevent copay assistance from being counted towards patients’ out-of-pocket costs. This disproportionately affects those of us managing serious arthritic illnesses, as many of these medications have no generic or biosimilar equivalents that are covered by their insurance.
With S.B. 844 and its companion H.B. 1628, Missouri lawmakers have the opportunity to help their constituents afford their medications and prioritize their health. Let’s put copay assistance within reach for more chronically ill people in our state, make medications affordable, and improve livelihoods and health outcomes in communities across our state.
Rachelle M. Rand grew up in Fenton, Missouri, and went to Avila University and later Webster University in Kansas City. She lived in the Kansas City metropolitan area for 23 years and in 2023 moved to Carl Junction, Missouri.