Lobbyists block mental health parity (Bush Plan)

CNN/AP ^ | June 22nd, 2004

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WASHINGTON (AP) -- Aided by House Speaker Dennis Hastert, insurance companies successfully have blocked legislation to make them provide equal coverage for mental and physical illnesses if their policies include both. President Bush endorsed the concept two years ago. Today, supporters of the bill are willing to settle for a scaled-back version they hope Congress will pass in 2004.

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The bill would expand a 1996 law prohibiting health plans that offer mental health coverage from setting lower annual and lifetime spending limits for mental treatments than for physical ailments. The proposed legislation also would require equal treatment for co-payments, deductibles and limits on doctor visits. Karen Ignagni, chief executive of America's Health Insurance Plans, said employers worried that would drive up health care costs and might cause some to drop mental health coverage altogether. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the legislation would increase health insurance costs slightly less than 1 percent, or roughly $23 billion a year. Ignagni said her group also is concerned about covering every mental health illness, from caffeine addiction to adjustments to adulthood.

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In an April 2002 speech to mental health professionals in New Mexico, Bush said the health insurance system must treat mental illness like any other ailments. "Americans with mental illness deserve our understanding and they deserve excellent care," Bush said. "They deserve a health care system that treats their illness with the same urgency as a physical illness." Bush added: "Health plans should not be allowed to apply unfair treatment limitations or financial requirements on mental health benefits." Officials with the White House and the Health and Human Services Department did not return phone messages, nor did Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tennessee.

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The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that the legislation would increase health insurance costs slightly less than 1 percent, or roughly $23 billion a year.

Another unfunded mandate on business?

Ideas like that have done wonders for California,
and costs never exceed projections.

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Our country must make a commitment: Americans with mental illness deserve our understanding, and they deserve excellent care. (Applause.) They deserve a health care system that treats their illness with the same urgency as a physical illness. (Applause.)

To meet this goal, we've got to overcome obstacles, and I want to talk about three such obstacles this morning. The first obstacle is the stigma, the stigma that often surrounds mental illness -- a stigma caused by a history of misunderstanding, fear, and embarrassment.

Stigma leads to isolation, and discourages people from seeking the treatment they need. Political leaders, health care professionals, and all Americans must understand and send this message: mental disability is not a scandal-- (applause) -- it is an illness. And like physical illness, it is treatable, especially when the treatment comes early.

Today, new drugs and therapies have vastly improved the outlook for millions of Americans with the most serious mental illnesses, and for millions more with less severe illnesses. The treatment success rates for schizophrenia and clinical depression are comparable to those for heart disease. That's good news in America, and we must encourage more and more Americans to understand, and to seek more treatment.

The second obstacle to quality mental health care is our fragmented mental health service delivery system. Mental health centers and hospitals, homeless shelters, the justice system, and our schools all have contact with individuals suffering from mental disorders. Yet many of these disorders are difficult to diagnose. This makes it even harder to provide the mentally ill with the care they need.

Many Americans fall through the cracks of the current system. Many years and lives are lost before help, if it is given at all, is given. Consider this example -- and for the experts in the field, they will confirm this is a story which is often times too true: a 14-year-old boy who started experimenting with drugs to ease his severe depression. That happens.

This former honor student became a drug addict. He dropped out of school, was incarcerated six times in 16 years. Only two years ago, when he was 30 years old, did the doctors finally diagnose his condition as bipolar disorder, and he began a successful program, a successful long-term treatment program.

And to make sure that the cracks are closed, I am honored to announce what we call the new Freedom Commission on Mental Health. It is charged to study the problems and gaps in our current system of treatment, and to make concrete recommendations for immediate provements that will be implemented -- (applause) -- and these will be improvements that can be implemented, and must be implemented, by the federal government, the state government, local agencies, as well as public and private health care providers.

To chair the commission, I've selected Michael Hogan. Dr. Hogan, I appreciate your coming, Michael. (Applause.) Dr. Hogan has served as the Director of the Ohio Department of Mental Health for more than ten years, and is recognized as a leader in this profession. He has been focused, as a state official, on how our mental health system works, and how it doesn't work.

I look forward to the Commission's findings. I look forward to their proposals. I look forward to making progress and fixing the system, so that Americans do not fall through the cracks. (Applause.)

The third major obstacle to effective mental health care is the often unfair treatment limitations placed on mental health in insurance coverage. (Applause.) Many private health insurance plans have developed effective programs to identify patients with mental illnesses, and they help them get the treatment they need to regain their health.

But insurance plans too often place greater restrictions on the treatment of mental illness than on the treatment of other medical illnesses. As a result, some Americans are unable to get effective medical treatments that would allow them to function well in their daily lives.

Our health insurance system must treat serious mental illness like any other disease. (Applause.) And that was Senator Domenici's message to me at the Oval Office. (Laughter.) And it was Nancy's message when we had them up for dinner. (Laughter.) And I want to appreciate the fact that they have worked tirelessly on this problem. (Applause.)

I have a record on this issue. As the Governor of Texas, I signed a bill to ensure that patients who critically need mental health are treated fairly. Senator Domenici and I share this commitment: health plans should not be allowed to apply unfair treatment limitations or financial requirements on mental health benefits. (Applause.)

It is critical that we provide full -- as we provide full mental health parity, that we do not significantly run up the cost of health care. I'll work with the Senator. I will work with the Speaker. I will work with their House and Senate colleagues to reach an agreement on mental health parity -- this year. (Applause.)

We must work for a welcoming and compassionate society, a society where no American is dismissed, and no American is forgotten. This is the great and hopeful story of our country, and we can write another chapter. We must give all Americans who suffer from mental illness the treatment, and the respect, they deserve. (Applause.)
President Says U.S. Must Make Commitment to Mental Health Care
White House website (excerpt) | April 29th, 2002

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FYI

[truthkeeper]

Now you've done it.

[Carry_Okie]

"Mental health" costs a fortune, because the providers have no interest in a "cure." Church is cheap by comparison, and not looking to maintain a cadre of dependents.

[TomServo]

"Mental health" costs a fortune, because the providers have no interest in a "cure."

Bump to that! No use in biting the hand that feeds you...

[rdb3]

Okay. What am I missing?

$710.96.. The price of freedom.

[Brian Allen]

<< every mental health illness, from ... "addiction" ... >>

Right there's 99.999% of the problem. [Lawyers and the statisicians who call themselves "psychologists" make up the rest]

Apart from being a flash responsibility-dodger's word for the inevitable consequences of his own [Usually felonious] bad habit -- and thus an indicator of a possibly pathological inability to recognise and deal with reality and/or to tell the truth about it -- "addiction" is no more a "mental illness" than are ingrown toenails and nose picking.

[Sabertooth]

Okay. What am I missing?

$23 billion annually is the opening bid of a small phase of President Bush's ambitious goals for mental health care in this country.

Consider that his prescription drug giveaway started out as a $135 billion proposal over 10 years, and ended up with a $535 billion price tag at passage.

[TigersEye]

Thanks for the ping. Glad this was nixed. At least partially nixed. Seems like Big Brother simply must keep his claws in everything even if only a little bit.

[Brian Allen]

<< "Mental health" costs a fortune, because the providers have no interest in a "cure."


Bump to that! No use in biting the hand that feeds you ... >>

All Y'All get it.

Blessings -- Brian

[The Old Hoosier]

Make no mistake: this law merely makes it illegal to insure anyone unless you also insure them for mental health. It will only hurt consumers.

[TigersEye]

It is charged to study the problems and gaps in our current system of treatment, and to make concrete recommendations for immediate provements that will be implemented -- (applause) -- and these will be improvements that can be implemented, and must be implemented, by the federal government, the state government, local agencies, as well as public and private health care providers.

Interesting.

[Bernard Marx]

Consider that his prescription drug giveaway started out as a $135 billion proposal over 10 years, and ended up with a $535 billion price tag at passage.

And we ain't seen nothin' yet! This new proposal (forgive me) is insane.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[janetgreen]

More nanny-state talk from Mr. Bush (who supposedly opposed big gubmint).

[Flipyaforreal]

Thanks for the ping, bookmark to read later....

[valkyrieanne]

More attempts by a Republican administration to interfere in areas best left to the private sector. I like to call it "No Loony Left Behind," myself.

[supercat]

Most types of health care treatments have clearly-defined goals; one can tell pretty well whether the treatment is a success, or whether more treatment is needed.

For example, suppose a person has a bacterial infection. A doctor might reasonably set a goal of curing the infection, and prescribe an antibiotic for that purpose. The goal in such a case is well-defined, and it will likely be possible to tell whether or not the goal was achieved.

In the case of mental health, however, it's much harder to define goals for treatment. While the absense of well-defined goals will not necessarily prevent treatment from providing some benefit, it will often prevent any level of treatment from being "enough".

[chatham]

I don't think any of this can be considered until the U.S.A. stops giving away Billions and Billions of dollars to every country on the Globe.
What has it cost the U.S. Taxpayer to keep American troops in Japan and Germany for the last 60 years or so.
Bush sounds more like "A chicken in every Pot" type of Politician.