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OKLAHOMA CITY — A bill setting insurance coverage minimums for autism treatment was given final approval by the Oklahoma House of Representatives on Wednesday and sent to the governor.

House Bill 2962, by Rep. Jason Nelson, R-Oklahoma City, mandates coverage for up to six years of treatment for children younger than 9, with an annual maximum of $25,000. Payment for therapy can be discontinued if an individual does not demonstrate improvement, and insurers can be exempt from the coverage requirement if it causes premiums to rise more than 1 percent.

The requirement would also apply to children covered by the state’s Medicaid program.

“I wish we didn’t have to do this,” Nelson said in closing debate. “I could even say it’s a bad bill. But I don’t know of any other way of doing it. We’ve asked for help (from insurers) in controlling costs and heard crickets.”

The Legislature has wrestled with autism coverage for the better part of a decade. At one point, it became such an emotionally charged issue that the House adopted a rule essentially banning it from consideration in alternating years.