By Connor Adams Sheets
State Assemblywoman Grace Meng (D-Flushing) learned firsthand shortly after becoming a mother more than two years ago that all of a baby’s needs are not necessarily covered by every health insurance provider.
Having seen that parents could be left struggling to pay for crucial items essential to helping a months-old infant safely grow into a healthy child, she introduced a bill to address that need in the Assembly late last month.
Her first son, Tyler, 2, had a milk allergy when he was very young, meaning his body could experience a negative reaction to the proteins contained in most baby formulas.
“The formula is for babies with allergies to normal formula,” she said at last Thursday’s meeting of the Flushing Chamber of Commerce. “The allergy can cause skin reactions and even death.”
He, like all of the 2 percent to 3 percent of babies afflicted by the ailment, had to drink a special formula recommended by his physician that did not contain the protein, much as lactose-intolerant individuals drink special lactose-free milk. Neocate is a popular brand of the formula.
Most babies grow out of the allergy within the first year or two of their lives, but it can be dangerous in the first months after birth.
Meng discovered there was a problem when she first went to pick up some of the special liquid and found that her insurance did not cover the formula, although some other insurance providers do.
She seeks to close that gap in her bill now, several months after the birth of her second son, Brandon.
“My bill would require insurance companies in New York state to cover the cost of this formula if it’s prescribed by a doctor,” she said.
Reach reporter Connor Adams Sheets by e-mail at csheets@cnglocal.com or by phone at 718-260-4538.
