The Georgia Council for Recovery supports the new rule proposed by the Biden Administration to reinforce 2008’s Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA) by requiring insurance providers to update health plans to make sure people have equivalent access between their mental health and physical health medical benefits.
“Peers and families who are paying out of pocket to pay for mental health and substance use medical care, even when they have health insurance, deserve strong rules with effective, consistent, and transparent enforcement,” said Laurisa Guerrero, Executive Director of the Georgia Council for Recovery.
Enforcement of this rule will move America to true parity, and it will help ensure we finally fulfill the promise of mental health parity required under the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA).
The rule would call on insurers to evaluate coverage based on a number of benchmarks, including the plan’s provider network, how much plans pay for out-of-network coverage and how often prior authorization is required and approved under existing plans, according to the administration.
This rule will make it easier to enforce the law when health plans are in violation. “This rule will provide clarity on what health plans need to do to be in compliance with the requirements of mental health parity so that regulators have the ability to enforce actions and hold people to the standards of the rule,” said Guerrero.
“Addressing Behavioral Health and the disparities between mental and physical health care must continue to remain a bipartisan policy priority for the Biden Administration and Congress’” said Guerrero
Once the rule is published in the Federal Register, it enters a 60-day public comment period before it can take effect.
