Parity for Mental Health Insurance Coverage
On January 29, 2010, federal regulations were issued regarding parity in mental health and substance abuse insurance coverage. What it means is that employer group health insurance plans (of companies with over 50 employees) will now have to offer the same coverage for mental health and drug abuse treatment as they do for medical illnesses. An article on CNNMoney.com, “New U.S. rules set parity for mental health care” explains,
“The measures, known as mental health parity, ban group health plans from applying different coverage standards for mental health disorders or substance abuse treatment than those for general medical treatment or surgery.
‘The rules we are issuing today will, for the first time, help assure that those diagnosed with these debilitating and sometimes life-threatening disorders will not suffer needless or arbitrary limits on their care,’ U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement.”
The rules could go into effect as soon as July 1, 2010 according to the article. Continue reading …
This is a post by Nancy LaFever. You can read more from her at the Centre for Emotional Wellbeing blog.
Article courtesy of Andrew G.R. and jobacle.com – your cure for carbon copy career advice!
