For Immediate Release
March 5, 2008
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Levin Statement on the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007
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(Washington D.C.)- U.S. Rep. Sander Levin (D-Royal Oak) made the following floor statement in support of the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007:
Mr. Speaker:
I rise in strong support of the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007.
Eleven years ago, the Congress came together to approve legislation that put the country on the road to mental health parity. But along that road, too many potholes remain unfilled. A letter I received last week from a Michigan psychologist reads, “Every day I see families with ‘good health coverage’ discover that their loved ones cannot get the mental health care they need because their employer-sponsored health insurance sets arbitrary, one-size-fits-all limits on mental health treatment that it does not impose on other medical or surgical benefits.”
When the National Institute for Mental Health reports that 1 in 4 adults have a diagnosable mental disorder in any given year, and 1 in every 17 Americans suffers from a more serious mental condition, we know that it is time to take action. Whether it’s a friend with signs of clinical depression, a son or daughter with a drug addiction or a parent with schizophrenia, too many people are not receiving the treatment that they need. In fact, a study conducted by the NIMH found that only 18% of Americans requiring mental health services received minimally adequate care.
We are all too familiar with the burden that inadequate access to mental health care can cause. People experiencing severe mental illnesses routinely exceed the number of allowable visits to a health care provider, leading to financial hardship or insufficient levels of care.
Under the current system, a person seeking mental health services may have to wait months to get an appointment with a practitioner in his or her insurance plan’s network, or have to pay a fortune out-of-pocket for mental health care.
The legislation before us ensures that Americans will have access to the mental health care they need by removing these barriers. Specifically, the bill requires health insurance companies that offer mental health benefits to offer them in a way that beneficiaries pay no more out of pocket than they would pay for physical and surgical health benefits. The bill also requires insurance companies that cover mental health benefits to cover the entire spectrum of them so that treatment for conditions like substance abuse and eating disorders will be covered.
All of us should join in supporting this important legislation to continue moving America along the road to parity, and the eventual elimination of discrimination, financial hardship and insufficient levels of care in our health care system.
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To Contact Congressman Levin: -
Email Congressman Levin In Michigan: 27085 Gratiot Ave, Roseville, MI 48066 | (586) 498-7122 | (248) 968-2025
In Washington: 1236 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515 | (202) 225-4961
