Perspective               

Mental Health Bill Passed by Senate

Right now, insurance plans often charge higher deductibles and copays for mental health care than they charge for other medical care. Many insurance plans also cover fewer visits to a doctor and fewer days of hospital care when patients are being treated for a mental health condition. The Senate recently passed a bill that would outlaw this inequality in coverage between mental health care and other medical care under all group health plans sponsored by employers with more than 50 employees.

Older and disabled Americans who need mental health treatment suffer from these same coverage discrimination issues as employees. Medicare only covers half of the cost of mental health care but covers 80 percent of other medical care. And, Medicare imposes a 190-day lifetime limit for psychiatric hospital stays but none for general inpatient care.

A new Medicare Rights Center study finds that 38 percent of our clients who have mental conditions had trouble paying for their mental health services and 69 percent struggled to pay for their prescription drugs.

It's time that all insurers--including Medicare--treat coverage of mental health and other health care equally and end their bias against people with mental health conditions. If you are a person with Medicare and you think Medicare should provide the same coverage for mental health care as it does for other medical care, call your members of Congress and let them know.

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