LWVCT Supports H.B. 6517 on Mental Health Parity

03/09/2013

 
March 7, 2013

To: Program Review and Investigations Committee

Subject : The League of Women Voters of Connecticut Supports H.B. 6517

The League of Women Voters of Connecticut urges you to support H.B. 6517 (AA implementing the Recommendations of the Legislative Program Review and Investigations Committee Concerning the Insurance Department's Duties, Mental Health Parity Compliance Checks and the External Review Application Process). LWVCT supports comprehensive, community-based mental health systems for children and adults, which systems should include early detection and intervention with a range of services to facilitate care, treatment and recovery.

The League strongly supports requiring the Connecticut Insurance Department (CID) to review health insurance plans in order to make certain that they are in compliance with qualitative parity for all mental health services. We are dismayed that the Program Review and Investigations (PRI) Committee found that CID does not, in fact, check for qualitative
treatment compliance. As stated in the report, “Federal law forbids greater non-quantitative treatment limitations, unless appropriate guidelines require differently or the limiting standards were applied equally to behavior health and medical care. Yet, the insurance department does not check for plan compliance with this aspect of the federal mental health parity law.”

H.B. 6517 would require the CID to select a method to check for compliance with both state and federal mental health parity laws and deserves your strong support.

Thank you for giving the League of Women Voters an opportunity to comment.

Respectfully submitted,

Naomi Schiff Myers and Alison Rivard
League of Women Voters of Connecticut
 

LWVCT Supports SB 877 and Mental Health Parity

05/03/2011

 
To: Members of the Senate

From: Naomi Schiff Myers, Director Social Policy, LWVCT

Subject: Public Hearing Testimony: The League of Women Voters of CT Urges your Support of SB 877

The League of Women Voters of Connecticut urges you to vote for SB 877, AAC Mental Health Parity. This bill will simply bring Connecticut into compliance with the new federal mental health parity law and ensure the state’s ability to enforce it. While Connecticut’s mental health

parity law already benefits consumers with individual and group health insurance plans, the new federal law would also benefit those in large self-insured plans, Medicaid managed care plans, and the State Children's Health Insurance Program (HUSKY B). Prior to the parity

laws, most insurance plans put arbitrary and unequal limits and conditions on mental health treatment. These arbitrary limits and discriminatory practices cost more in the long run, harmed lives, and put many families into unfair financial hardship and even bankruptcy.

The League believes that every resident should have access to a basic level of health care at an affordable cost and supports comprehensive, community-based mental health systems for children and adults. These systems should include early detection and intervention with a range of services to facilitate care, treatment and recovery. We strongly urge your support for SB 877. 

Thank you.

Naomi Schiff Myers
  Director of Social Policy
  League of Women Voters of Connecticut
  1890 Dixwell Avenue
  Hamden, CT 06514