Walk to raise awareness about no-fault auto law
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — Advocates gathered at Riverside Park Sunday to raise awareness about Michigan's no-fault auto law and the impact it has on car crash survivors.
The Walk and Roll A Thon was hosted by Coalition Protecting Auto No-Fault (CPAN), an organization that advocates for survivors and medical providers. The walk began at 10 a.m.
Organizers said the legislation, which passed in 2019, has caused an ongoing care crisis for survivors, making some of them lose access to care. They said the law removed unlimited access to personal injury protection which means there is a cap to your coverage. If you go over the cap, you pay the rest out of pocket.
Wesley Bush attended the walk and regularly advocates for lawmakers to change this law. His daughter was in a car crash 30 years ago that caused her to need life-long care. He said if the current law were in effect then they would have not been able to afford to help her.
"Those benefits were taken away and people who have been involved in accidents since 2019 do not have, even though they're buying insurance that says unlimited, they're not getting unlimited coverage," Bush said. "It's very very limited."
CPAN has been advocating for bills in the state legislature. The bills have passed through the Senate but are currently stalled in the House.
Kimberley Pazkowski, the program director at Neural Restorative of Grand Rapids, said the goal of the walk was to make sure people were aware of the law and push for change.
"Pay attention to what's going on in your insurances and also make sure that your PIP limits are maximized," Pazkowski said. "CPAN has been influential in making sure that persons who have been involved in an accident are being heard at the level of Lansing and above and that we're doing what we can to help make and foster change for them."
The walk in Grand Rapids was the last stop on CPAN's walks across the state. There was an event in Kalamazoo on Friday. All proceeds from the walk go to the organization.
