By unanimous consent Tuesday night, the Senate passed a mental health parity insurance bill (S. 558) eliminating barriers for people seeking treatment for mental illness and addiction disorders. This applies to businesses with 50 or more employees.
The bill was co-sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), and Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM), both long-time champions of health reform. Domenici is also a former board member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). He previously sponsored the 1996 Mental Health Parity Act, which this expands. Meanwhile, the House version, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act, (H.R. 1424) is making its way through committees, with final mark-up from the Subcommittee on Health due today. It is likely to pass a full vote in the House.
Major differences between the two will need to be reconciled, notably who defines mental illness and addictive disorders. The Senate's bill depends on the company health insurance plan; the Wellstone Act requires accepting the illnesses specified in the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program. Other differences are: mechanisms for enforcement. The Wellstone Act designates the IRS; the Senate bill designates an ombudsman from Health and Human Services plus random audits. The Wellstone Act also specifies that insurance companies supply, upon request, information about how decisions are made or denied.
