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<DIV><SPAN class=291503713-08062005><FONT color=#0000ff size=2>On Monday at an
11:00 press conference in Albany, members of the Timothy's Law Campaign unveiled
an updated version of Timothy's Law that we hope will pave the way to passage of
the bill in the NYS Legislature this year. Primarily, the updated bill
addresses the concerns that have been raised by those concerned about the impact
Timothy's Law might have on the ability of small business owners to continue to
afford health insurance for their employees. In addition, the Timothy's
Law Campaign showed members of the press the 30-second Timothy's Law TV spot
that features images from Timothy O'Clair's childhood and a voiceover by his
father, Tom.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=291503713-08062005><FONT color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=291503713-08062005><FONT color=#0000ff size=2>Following is the
Timothy's Law Campaign press release from Monday. Several television
stations, radio stations and newspapers picked up the news, lending further to
Timothy's Law's public visability.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=291503713-08062005><FONT color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=291503713-08062005><FONT color=#0000ff size=2>Immediately
following this e-mail will be another e-mail detailing this week's Call-In,
scheduled for Thursday, June 9th.</FONT></SPAN></DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=291503713-08062005><FONT color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=291503713-08062005><FONT color=#0000ff
size=2></FONT></SPAN> </DIV>
<DIV><SPAN class=291503713-08062005><FONT color=#0000ff size=2><FONT
color=#000000 size=3> </FONT>
<P class=MsoNormal style="mso-layout-grid-align: none"><FONT size=3><FONT
color=#000000><IMG height=192 hspace=12 src="cid:291503713@08062005-03FA"
width=149 align=left v:shapes="_x0000_s1026"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 24pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Caslon540 BT'; mso-font-width: 80%"><?xml:namespace
prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"
/><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="mso-layout-grid-align: none" align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 46pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Caslon540 BT'; mso-font-width: 80%"><FONT
color=#000000>Timothy’s Law Campaign<o:p></o:p></FONT></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; mso-layout-grid-align: none"
align=center><FONT color=#000000><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 9.5pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Caslon540 BT'; mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt">Working
for health insurance parity for mental health and chemical dependency
coverage<BR></SPAN><?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns =
"urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:address
w:st="on"><st1:Street w:st="on"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Caslon540 BT'">15 Elk
Street</SPAN></st1:Street><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Caslon540 BT'">, <st1:City
w:st="on">Albany</st1:City>, <st1:State w:st="on">New York</st1:State>
<st1:PostalCode w:st="on">12207</st1:PostalCode></SPAN></st1:address><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Caslon540 BT'"><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>518-432-0333<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>fax 518-434-6478
www.TimothysLaw.org<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; mso-layout-grid-align: none"
align=center><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 8pt; FONT-FAMILY: 'Caslon540 BT'"><o:p><FONT
color=#000000> </FONT></o:p></SPAN></FONT></SPAN><FONT size=2><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 36pt">PRESS
RELEASE<o:p></o:p></SPAN></B></P></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: right" align=right> </P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" align=center><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><U><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 14pt"><o:p><SPAN
style="TEXT-DECORATION: none"></SPAN></o:p></SPAN></U></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" align=center><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><U><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 17pt">Timothy’s
Law Campaign Unveils Updated Bill that Addresses Small Business
Concerns<o:p></o:p></SPAN></U></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" align=center><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><U><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 17pt"><o:p><SPAN
style="TEXT-DECORATION: none"></SPAN></o:p></SPAN></U></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" align=center><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 16pt">Group Also
Unveils Timothy’s Law Ad set to </SPAN></I><I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 16pt">Air on
Stations Throughout <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:State w:st="on">New
York</st1:State></st1:place><o:p></o:p></SPAN></I></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" align=center><B
style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal"><U><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 17pt"><o:p><SPAN
style="TEXT-DECORATION: none"></SPAN></o:p></SPAN></U></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">For
over a decade, advocates have been working to secure passage of legislation that
would end discriminatory insurance practices levied against individuals
suffering from mental illness.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Three years ago, a name and a face were given to those efforts and most
unfortunately it was the face of a twelve-year old boy named Timothy O’Clair,
who, after struggling with mental illness for five of his twelve short years,
took his own life in March of 2001.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">While struggling with his illness, Timothy’s parents,
Tom and Donna O’Clair found themselves to be in a battle for their son’s life on
two levels; stabilizing Timothy’s condition and securing the treatment necessary
to accomplish this.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>As they attempted to maneuver through the
mental health system, Timothy’s parents were astonished to discover that, unlike
treatment for physical health care, health insurers and HMO’s in <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">New York</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">State</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> are allowed to restrict treatment
for mental illness however they see fit.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>The result of these practices forced the O’Clair family down a road of
rationing Timothy’s treatment. Eventually, as a result of these limitations, and
as a last ditch effort to obtain care for Timothy, the O’Clair’s were forced to
relinquish custody of him to the state.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">
</SPAN>Unfortunately, in the end, the family’s efforts were in vain, as Timothy
completed his suicide at the tender age of twelve.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>However, the O’Clair’s war was far from
over as they joined in the crusade to end discriminatory insurance practices and
lent the movement Timothy’s name.</SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Opposition to Timothy’s Law has long since revolved
around the belief that passing such a measure will negatively impact small
businesses in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">New
York</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType w:st="on">State</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>,
citing that increasing access to mental health benefits will also increase
premiums, causing small businesses to drop insurance all together. Legislators
have heard this message and as a result, New Yorkers with mental illness are
still struggling to access treatment.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The Timothy’s Law Campaign (TLC)
has heard this message as well and as a result, the have come up with a
solution.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>After many months of
work, TLC has updated their version of Timothy’s Law to address the concerns of
the small</SPAN> <SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">business community. This updated
version of Timothy’s Law will provide New Yorkers in need of mental health and
addiction treatment access to services <I
style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal">without </I>placing an undue burden on small
employers. The bill represents a significant compromise on the part of the
Timothy’s Law supporters to address the concerns of small employers.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>“Our intention is not, and has never
been to create a burden on the small business community in <st1:place
w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">New York</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType
w:st="on">State</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Our goal is to prevent families from
experiencing the additional pain and suffering that our family has undergone.
While the bill doesn’t go quite as far as we would like in completely
eliminating discriminatory health insurance policies, I think it represents a
fair compromise to those who have expressed concern while at the same time
sparing other families from unnecessary anguish, hence, I am proud to lend my
son’s name to this bill” stated Tom O’Clair. </SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Paige Macdonald, Executive Director of Families Together
in <st1:place w:st="on"><st1:PlaceName w:st="on">New York</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceType w:st="on">State</st1:PlaceType></st1:place> and Co-chair of the
TLC, called it, “a good faith effort on our part to genuinely address the
concerns that many have had regarding the impact of Timothy’s Law on small
businesses.”</SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">The
Coalition for the Homeless’ Shelly Nortz, a key contributor to the creation of
the updated bill, explained how it would work.<SPAN
style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><SPAN style="COLOR: black">“First, we
believe that the current benefit structure provided by most health
plans must be codified to establish a base benefit - a floor, if you
will, to even the playing field. With this cornerstone, no plan could provide
less than the base benefit - the practice of charging exponentially higher
co-payments for mental health and addiction services would finally come to an
end.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>Building on this universal
foundation, employers with more than 50 employees would be required to provide
complete parity-based benefits, and employers with 50 or fewer employees would
be provided with the option to purchase the same benefits that larger employers
would be required to provide.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>For
those small employers that choose not to subscribe to the additional coverage, a
financial safety net would be in place should any of their employees need more
than the base amount of inpatient care provided by their insurance plan.
Such employees facing a catastrophic situation such as foreclosure, bankruptcy,
eviction, or child custody relinquishment would qualify for help in
covering extraordinary costs for inpatient care. We think this package is a
prescription for success.” </SPAN></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt">The
press conference concluded with the unveiling of a 30-second television spot,
featuring images from Timothy O’Clair’s childhood and a voice over by Timothy’s
father, Tom O’Clair.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN>The TV spot,
viewable at <A href="http://www.timothyslaw.org/"><FONT
color=#000000>www.timothyslaw.org</FONT></A>, explains what happened to the
O’Clair family, the barriers they faced in trying to get Timothy the mental
health services he needed, and urges people to call Governor Pataki, Senate
Majority Leader Bruno and Speaker Silver to call for passage of Timothy’s Law
this year.</SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 11pt"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P>
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