00                      SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 16                                                                    
01 Urging the United States Congress to pass the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act; and urging                                   
02 lawmakers to advocate for policies that guarantee equitable access to vital healthcare.                                 
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04       WHEREAS the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act seeks to ensure that individuals born                                   
05 with congenital anomalies, including cleft lip and cleft palate, have access to the medically                           
06 necessary treatment and care the individuals need throughout the individuals' lives; and                                
07 WHEREAS the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act aims to require private health insurance                                      
08 plans to cover all medically necessary treatment, including surgery, therapy, and associated                            
09 care, for congenital anomalies, without imposing a lifetime or annual limit on that coverage;                           
10 and                                                                                                                     
11       WHEREAS an individual born with congenital anomalies often faces a lifetime of                                  
12 surgeries, speech therapy, dental care, and other medical needs, making access to                                       
13 comprehensive health care essential for the individual's well-being and quality of life; and                            
14 WHEREAS many families struggle to afford the high cost of necessary medical                                           
15 treatments, especially if a family's insurance plan limits coverage for congenital anomaly care                         
16 or does not cover specific procedures, resulting in financial hardship and delayed or                                   

01 inadequate care; and                                                                                                    
02       WHEREAS the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act would provide critical protections for                                  
03 families by ensuring that private health insurance plans cover medically necessary treatments                           
04 and services for congenital anomalies and prevent arbitrary limits on the duration of care; and                         
05 WHEREAS the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act was brought to the attention of the                                           
06 Anchorage Assembly by Emily Brubaker, who was an eighth grade student at Romig Middle                                   
07 School at the time, when she was honored by the Anchorage Assembly for her significant                                  
08 achievement as winner of the National Civics Bee contest; and                                                           
09       WHEREAS Emily Brubaker was born with a rare congenital anomaly called                                           
10 hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia, which affects the development of skin, hair, teeth, nails,                           
11 and sweat glands; and                                                                                                   
12 WHEREAS dental work for Emily Brubaker's condition is likely to cost her family                                       
13 more than $100,000; and                                                                                                 
14 WHEREAS, at the age of six, Emily Brubaker began taking trips to Washington, D.C.                                     
15 with her family to share her story with members of the United States Congress, encouraging                              
16 members to pass the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act, which would require private health                                     
17 insurance plans to cover diagnosis and treatment of congenital anomalies and birth defects for                          
18 which some insurance companies deny coverage as dental care; and                                                        
19 WHEREAS the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act was last introduced in the 117th United                                       
20 States Congress as H.R.1916 and S.754 and is currently being rewritten; and                                             
21 WHEREAS, while the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act does not currently have a primary                                      
22 sponsor in the United States House of Representatives, the Act may be introduced in the                                 
23 119th United States Congress by Senators Joni Ernst and Tammy Baldwin;                                                  
24 BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges the Alaska Congressional                                       
25 Delegation to support the passage of the Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act to ensure                                          
26 comprehensive, affordable, and uninterrupted medical care for state residents with congenital                           
27 anomalies; and be it                                                                                                    
28 FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature urges lawmakers to                                                 
29 continue advocating for policies that guarantee equitable access to vital healthcare for all                            
30 individuals.                                                                                                            
31 COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Donald J. Trump, President                                   

01 of the United States; the Honorable JD Vance, Vice President of the United States and                                   
02 President of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Mike Johnson, Speaker of the U.S. House of                                  
03 Representatives; the Honorable Chuck Grassley, President pro tempore of the U.S. Senate; the                            
04 Honorable John Thune, Majority Leader of the U.S. Senate; the Honorable Lisa Murkowski                                  
05 and the Honorable Dan Sullivan, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Nicholas Begich, U.S.                                  
06 Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress; and all other members of the                              
07 119th United States Congress.