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Washington, D.C. --- The U.S. House of Representatives today passed legislation introduced by U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Health, extending the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 through the end of 2008. The bill was passed by a vote of 384 to 23.
"Today, the House once again showed its commitment to extending the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996, the first ever federal parity law," Pallone said after the vote. "Those who battle mental illness and alcohol and drug addiction should receive coverage for their mental illness that is on par with that of other physical illnesses. This law bars the use of arbitrary limits on annual and lifetime caps on mental health services that are not also imposed on other medical benefits."
Specifically, the New Jersey congressman's legislation amends the Internal Revenue Code, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), and the Public Health Service Act to extend mental health parity provisions until December 31, 2008. Currently, these provisions require plans to treat equally mental health benefits and medical and surgical benefits for both lifetime and annual benefit limits covered by the plan.
The Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 was passed by Congress and then signed into law by President Clinton. The Act was authorized for five years and has been extended every year with bipartisan support since its initial authorization expired.
The New Jersey congressman said that while the Mental Health Parity Act is a good first step, we have a long way to go before we achieve full mental health parity. Pallone said it is imperative that Congress also pass H.R. 1424, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2007, which was introduced last year by U.S. Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN).
"In spite of the 1996 law and widespread recognition that mental illness and substance abuse are treatable illnesses, glaring inequities still exist between health insurance coverage for mental health and that for other medical conditions," Pallone said during floor debate on the House floor. "As we all know, these inequities can have dire consequences. H.R. 1424 would take our nation one step closer to ensuring that every American can access the mental health, substance abuse and addiction treatment that they need to live healthy, happy and productive lives." |
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