HOUSE PASSES
MENTAL HEALTH PARITY LEGISLATION!
After more than a decade of struggle, the House last night passed HR 1424, The Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act.
The legislation addresses the discrimination in group health plans against persons with mental health or substance use disorders. This bill would expand the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 by prohibiting group health plans from imposing treatment or financial limitations on mental health benefits that are different from those applied to medical/surgical services. The legislation closes the loopholes that allow discrimination in the co-payment, coinsurance, deductible, maximum out-of-pocket limit and day and visit limits. It applies only to group health plans already providing mental health benefits, and excludes (as does current law) health plans sponsored by employers of fewer than 50 people.
The House vote was 268 to 148, with 47 Republicans joining 221 Democrats in support of the measure. The Senate version of the bill passed the Senate by unanimous consent on September 18th, 2007. Next, both the House and Senate will convene a conference committee to negotiate the differences between the two bills. We will notify with the names of the conference committee members once they are appointed.
Before this historic vote, mental health and addiction advocates from around the country gathered for a press conference on the Capitol steps. Speakers at the rally included House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN), Dave Wellstone, and members of the House leadership.
Please call your Representative and thank him/her for their support!
To see if your Representative voted in favor of the House legislation, please clink on this below link.
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll101.xml
If you do not know who your Representative is, go to www.house.gov and enter your zip code in the upper left corner. When connected to the office, ask for the Health Legislative Assistant. Below is a sample message. If you leave a voicemail message, include your name and phone number.
Suggested Message
"I am a child and adolescent psychiatrist from your district and I am calling to thank Representative _________ for voting in support of H.R. 1424, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act. A lack of parity in insurance is one of the key barriers of treatment for children and adolescents with mental illness. Your vote will make a difference in many people’s lives. If I can be of any further assistance, please let me know.
Please contact the AACAP Dept. of Government Affairs at 800.333.7636, x. 128, or e-mail pjones@aacap.org with any questions.
Please let us know when you have contacted your Representative.
Thank you for your action!
MENTAL HEALTH PARITY LEGISLATION!
After more than a decade of struggle, the House last night passed HR 1424, The Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act.
The legislation addresses the discrimination in group health plans against persons with mental health or substance use disorders. This bill would expand the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 by prohibiting group health plans from imposing treatment or financial limitations on mental health benefits that are different from those applied to medical/surgical services. The legislation closes the loopholes that allow discrimination in the co-payment, coinsurance, deductible, maximum out-of-pocket limit and day and visit limits. It applies only to group health plans already providing mental health benefits, and excludes (as does current law) health plans sponsored by employers of fewer than 50 people.
The House vote was 268 to 148, with 47 Republicans joining 221 Democrats in support of the measure. The Senate version of the bill passed the Senate by unanimous consent on September 18th, 2007. Next, both the House and Senate will convene a conference committee to negotiate the differences between the two bills. We will notify with the names of the conference committee members once they are appointed.
Before this historic vote, mental health and addiction advocates from around the country gathered for a press conference on the Capitol steps. Speakers at the rally included House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN), Dave Wellstone, and members of the House leadership.
Please call your Representative and thank him/her for their support!
To see if your Representative voted in favor of the House legislation, please clink on this below link.
http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll101.xml
If you do not know who your Representative is, go to www.house.gov and enter your zip code in the upper left corner. When connected to the office, ask for the Health Legislative Assistant. Below is a sample message. If you leave a voicemail message, include your name and phone number.
Suggested Message
"I am a child and adolescent psychiatrist from your district and I am calling to thank Representative _________ for voting in support of H.R. 1424, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act. A lack of parity in insurance is one of the key barriers of treatment for children and adolescents with mental illness. Your vote will make a difference in many people’s lives. If I can be of any further assistance, please let me know.
Please contact the AACAP Dept. of Government Affairs at 800.333.7636, x. 128, or e-mail pjones@aacap.org with any questions.
Please let us know when you have contacted your Representative.
Thank you for your action!
