News: Despite Law, Mental Health Coverage Lacking In Many Insurance Plans
Despite last year's passage of the most comprehensive parity insurance law providing coverage for mental illnesses and substance use disorders, waivers still exclude people and many in the high-risk category will have to wait until 2014. KaiserHealthNews spoke to NAMI's Andrew Sperling to learn more about the application of this law to 140 million people affected by it. . .
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News: Push back attempts to delay parity
The Hill: "Health plans that say mental illnesses can't be treated like physical ailments are relying on an 'outdated argument' without merit that does not reflect 'three decades of scientific research,' 52 House members wrote in a recent letter to regulators. . .
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News: Parity or not, insurance companies saying no
An article in the Boston Globe confirms that limits on mental health claims are beginning to be felt in Mass. The Group Insurance Commission has led the way, but a psychologist who spent hours arguing with United Behavioral Health. . .
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News: Insurance companies attempt to delay parity
In what amounts to trying to delay full implementation of the mental health parity law passed in 2008, a coalition of insurance companies went to federal court in April to claim "irreperable harm" and challenge the date when the new regs take effect. The American Psychiatric Association and other advocates oppose these attempts to roll back parity. . .
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News: Benefits of parity law showing

News: Interim parity regulations hailed

News: Mental health parity regs delayed
The three departments charged with writing regulations providing guidance for the implementation of Wellstone-Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act missed the Oct. 3 deadline. . .
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Consider This: Thought parity was a done deal?
. . .Think again
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News: Parity protection requires regulations

News: New York's Timothy's Law for kids
New York's governor David Paterson announced support for making access to mental health treatment permanent for kids by extending Timothy's Law. The law is named after Timothy O'Clair, a 12 year-old who committed suicide and whose family ran into insurance barriers for mental health treatment. Paterson announced his support on what would have been Timothy's 21st birthday and on the heels of a report citing how effective the temporary law had been in getting kids services. The state subsidizes businesses...
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News: Parity a civil rights issue says Domenici
Sen. Pete Domenici Time Magazine speaks with Sen. Pete Domenici, early proponent of eliminating insurance barriers for mental health and substance use treatments which became part of the $700 billion rescue package. Domenici learned of the bias in treating mental disorders first hand as the parent of a daughter diagnosed with schizophrenia....
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Consider This: PARITY PASSES -- Kudos
. . .Next steps essential
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Track Legislation: Parity bill goes back to House
The Senate voted to approve the rescue bill which contained the mental health parity bill. Now the package returns to the House. See Update on parity...
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News: Update on parity
Mental health parity was tucked into the Senate's $700 billion revised rescue package which passed 74 to 25 on Wednesday evening. The package returns to the House where Rep. Jim Ramstad told reporters that the inclusion of parity will influence his vote. Parity has been a signature issue for Ramstad who was among the 122 Republicans voting against the bill....
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News: Little time left for parity bill
With little time left for passage of mental health parity, an editorial in the New York Times calls for "a statesman who can push this worthy parity legislation through to final passage before adjournment." Despite overwhelming support, the bill remains deadlocked over recouping tax revenues in the next decade. Health policy expert, Dr. Howard Goldman, explains why parity matters....
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News: House passes parity
By a vote of 376 to 47, the House passed insurance parity. Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), one of the sponsors applauded the negotiations leading to the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (H.R. 6983), saying it would end "the cruel and unnecessary stigma associated with mental illness and substance abuse."...
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Consider This: Parity in peril
. . .Congress should act
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News: Rally for parity
A rally drew advocates to call attention to time running out to pass a bill ending insurance discrimination for 113 milion people with mental health and addictive disorders. Here Rep. Betty McCullom (D-Mn) makes the case for what happens to families who must use the emergency room because insurance they lack insurance or veterans are handed a "1-800 number." The proposed legislation makes insurance coverage equal for physician and hospital payments when employers offer policies for physical health. Reps....
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News: Rally planned for parity
With the air going out of this year's Congress, and the fate of parity insurance less certain despite bipartisan and bicameral support, 250 groups are planning a morning rally on Sept. 17.Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN) are scheduled to speak. Sponsors hope the 10-year battle to end insurance discrimination for many will be achieved before the retirement of Sen. Pete Dominici (R-NM) who has been long associated with insurance reform....
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News: Parity for Medicare mental health
By an overwhelming majority in both houses, Congress reversed a bias built into the 1965 law for seniors when it overturned a presidential veto of a Medicare bill. It will take six years for the rates to drop from the current 50 percent to the same 20 percent older Americans pay for physical health, but the reversal is a symbolic and a real achievement and was the focus of intense lobbying by advocacy and consumer organizations. In addition to establishing...
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News: The year of insurance parity
Negotiations over a law for mental health insurance parity appear to be ending, according to a mid-day report from CQ Politics. This ends a 15-year drive to end discrimination, and caps the careers of two of its congressional sponsors. A sticking point was allegedly resolved when Reps. Patrick Kennedy and Jim Ramstad (who is retiring from Congress), dropped requirements making diagnosis for psychiatric and substance abuse disorders depend on the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual. The Senate's bill,...
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News: Talks on insurance parity close gaps
Negotiations over key differences in the bills for mental health insurance parity are moving forward now that the House signaled it is willing to drop its insistence on using the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) to define psychiatric disorders. The Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (H.R. 1424) had overwhelming support from 274 co-sponsors, and passed the House by a large margin in March. But using the DSM to define psychiatric and substance...
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Track Legislation: S. 558
Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) introduced the Mental Health Parity Act of 2007 on February 11, 2007: “To provide parity between health insurance coverage of mental health benefits and benefits for medical and surgical services.”
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Track Legislation: H.R. 1424
Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) introduced the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 on March 8, 2007: “To amend section 712 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, section 2705 of the Public Health Service Act, section 9812 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to require equity in the provision of mental health and substance-related disorder benefits under group health plans, to prohibit discrimination on the basis of genetic information with respect to health insurance and employment, and for other purposes.”
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News: Readers discuss parity
A provocative editorial in the New York Times elicited reader response by asking “tricky questions” about what mental health parity should cover and why. The author, Sarah Kershaw, went through a sequence of concerns and also mentioned they are absent in European countries which treat psychiatric conditions as medical problems....
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Consider This: Insurance, business interests favor Senate's parity bill
Insurance, business interests favor Senate's parity bill
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News: House votes for parity
The House of Representatives voted 268 to 148 to require equal insurance coverage for mental illnesses and addictive disorders, a measure which would overturn federal approval of discrimination. It’s almost one year to the date since the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act was introduced by Rep. Patrick Kennedy, here testifying at congressional hearings. President Bush once endorsed parity but now says he opposes it for ideological reasons, according to a report in the New York Times....
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News: Paying for parity
House leaders are suggesting two sources of revenue to off-set declines as a result of an insurance parity bill (HR 1424). One would come from banning physicians from making referrals to specialty hospitals in which they have a financial interest. The second would require an increase in drug company discounts to state Medicaid programs. The Congressional Quarterly reported that Republicans were worried, saying the offsets could "cause conservative concern." The House measure, which has 273 co-sponsors, is expected to reach...
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News: One year insurance extension
The House voted a one-year extension of the 1996 mental health insurance law while waiting for a more comprehensive bill to work its way through committees. Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) noted that eleven years ago when the Mental Health Parity Act was passed, it was “only partial parity for mental illness and excluded addiction benefits.” Two bills currently under discussion in Congress attempt to plug some of those holes. In the House, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity...
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Interviews: Q & A with Bill Emmet: Mandating health reform
by Phyllis Vine
A coalition of advocates launched the Whole Health Campaign to remind presidential hopefuls that health reform is incomplete without including mental health and substance abuse in the calculus. In a conversation with MIWatch, Bill Emmet discusses this necessity.


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News: Insurance parity no shoe-in
Disagreements between the House and Senate may "thwart" reconciliation of their respective proposals for mental health parity insurance. According to the Daily Report from the Kaiser Family Foundation, lawmakers have characterized negotiations over the past month as difficult. The House version (HR 1424) is considered a more comprehensive bill, requiring coverage of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) disorders. It would also take effect in Jan. 2008. The Senate bill (S 558), which permits insurers to define the disorders, would be...
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News: Heart disease killing people with mental illness
An editorial in Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) sounds a wake up call to the medical community to address the shortened life span of untreated cardiovascular disease for people with a mental illness. On average their life-span is 25 years shorter, and the authors go beyond explaining this disparity with diet and smoking (people with mental illness consume about half of the cigarettes sold in the United States). They urge psychiatrists to begin monitoring cholesterol, blood pressure, and...
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News: Another step for parity bill
By a vote of 32-13, the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved a bill to eliminate insurance bias in treating mental illness and substance abuse disorders. Five Republicans joined 27 Democrats to approve the measure, but not before Republicans tried to reword it in accord with the Senate version which allows insurance companies, along with business, to specify relevant disorders. This bill has been championed by Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MI), pictured here, who have described their...
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Consider This: "Canvas:" A family portrait
by Phyllis Vine
"Canvas" is an honest and textured portrayal of an ordinary family managing the uncertainties schizophrenia brings to their lives. Marcia Gay Harden (Mary), Joe Pantoliano (John) and Devon Gearhart (Chris) give stunning performances of living on the margin of Mary's illness and hospitalizations while they face an uncertain future. Writer and director Joseph Greco writes without sensationalizing a painful story.

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News: Wellstone Act moving through subcommittees
Today a House subcommittee is expected to approve the "Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act" (HR 1424), the insurance parity bill championed by Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI). The bill has 240 co-sponsors, making it likely to win House approval. Many differences between the Senate (S 558) and House versions have already been ironed out, but a major sticking point is who defines the illness. The Senate's bill relies on providers and employers, while the House version is tagged...
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Consider This: Wall Street eyes psychiatric care
by Phyllis Vine
Wall Street believes there's money to be made in conglomerates owning psychiatric services. Some of these companies have been acquiring hospitals and treatment programs in anticipation of changing federal law. What does this mean for who shapes treatments leading to recovery, and who benefits?
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News: A step closer to insurance parity
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...
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News: North Carolina enacts insurance parity
North Carolina has become the latest state to require parity in mental health insurance covering for co-pays, hospitalization and doctors visits....
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News: Pass parity say former first ladies
Washington Times, July 18, 2007 Former first ladies Betty Ford and Rosalynn Carter urge passage of the Wellstone Act (HR 1424) to end bias and reduce barriers to treating mental illness and substance abuse disorders. Cost for this has been estimated at "less than a loaf of bread per person per month," they say. "Our country can afford to end this discrimination. "...
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News: Richardson calls for expanded coverage
Fosters Online, May 7, 2007 One solution for ending patchwork insurance coverage and inequities comes from Gov. Bill Richardson, Democratic governor of New Mexico and presidential aspirant, who recommended using the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program to establish a platform. The federal program, available to all government employees, is the standard Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Rep. Jim Ramstad (R-MN) have suggested for mental health parity insurance because it employs DSM criteria for diagnosing a mental illness....
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News: Parity insurance should be evidence based
New York Times op-ed argues that parity without evidence-based criteria for diagnosis and treatment misses the point....
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Interviews: Q & A with Rep. Jim Ramstad (R-MN) on insurance parity
by Phyllis Vine
Rep. Jim Ramstad talks about insurance parity which will put psychiatric and addi tive disorders on par with physican ailments.
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News: Capitol Hill abuzz discussing equity for mental illness
Rep. Pete Stark (D-CAL), who chairs the House Ways and Means Health, introduced legislation (HR 1663) calling for increasing Medicare services (including lower co-pays and longer hospitalization) for the elderly, many of whom display symptoms of mental illness that are unrelated to aging. This bill is independent of the legislation Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN) introduced asking for parity of insurance coverage based on DSM IV standards....
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Consider This: Representative Patrick Kennedy on Parity
Testimony of Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) before the House Ways and Means Committee on Health, March 27, 2007, on behalf of mental health parity insurance.
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News: Kennedy father and son disagree
The New York Times calls the difference between Senator Ted Kennedy and his son, Rep. Patrick Kennedy, one of pragmatism versus passion for enacting mental health insurance parity. Senate and House bills differ on parity Word play alone should not obscure variations in the bill each chamber is considering to correct well-known disparities covering people with serious mental illness. Both, the the Senate version (S. 558) sponsored by Senator Pete Dominici with 25 co-sponsors, and the House version (HR 1424)...
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Commentary: Mental Health Parity: Its Time Has Come
by Ralph Ibson
Insurance coverage for mental illnesses has lagged far behind that accorded physical conditions. Now the Senate and the House are considering closing loopholes in the 1996 law. If passed, Ralph Ibson explains how this will contribute to ending discrimination and stigma for treatment of psychiatric disorders.
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News: Another round for insurance parity legislation
The Senate introduced a bi-partisan bill for health insurance to cover mental illness and substance abuse. It aims to expand coverage and end discrimination in employee plans. State parity laws, many with incomplete coverage, are also inconsistent, and the president of Mental Health America, David Shern, noted that millions of people are excluded from them. Limiting access to “needed health care based solely on society's characterization of an illness raises a profound civil rights issue,” he said. Another bill to...
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