Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits
Posted By atorturedsoul on November 10, 2009
The Mental Health Parity Act takes effect January 1, 2010. How does this affect your health policy’s mental health benefits?
Be sure to take a look at your insurance benefits for the year 2010 and pay close attention to your mental health benefits, deductibles and limitations. It’s very likely that it has changed. The Mental Health Parity Act requires group plans that cover more than 50 people provide the same benefits for mental health care and substance abuse treatment as they do for medical care.
While this seems like a positive change, you may be required to receive authorization prior to receiving services which can delay necessary treatment. If you have an existing mental health condition, you should speak with your insurance company right away to find out if you will need to qualify for mental health care services and take the necessary steps to gain approval before the first of the year.
My insurance coverage limited outpatient therapy sessions to 12 a year, but will pay for 60 sessions a year beginning January 1. It still maintains the 30 day limit on inpatient hospitalization in a mental health care facility, which doesn’t seem to follow the law since hospitalization for medical reasons has no limits. This may simply be a mistake made when printing the insurance coverage summary. I will certainly check on this once I receive the full policy changes in January. My deductibles remain the same on medical and mental health care, which have both been 90% for several years.
Be sure to check with your insurance company and see how your mental health care coverage will change.
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Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits — check your policy http://bit.ly/4rGp97
Important! RT @torturedsoul Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits — check your policy http://bit.ly/4rGp97
Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits — check your policy http://bit.ly/4rGp97
Important! RT @torturedsoul Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits — check your policy http://bit.ly/4rGp97
Important! RT @torturedsoul Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits — check your policy http://bit.ly/4rGp97
yeah, it’s those limited inpatient days that are killing us – even having state medicaid as a secondary – because it causes her to be in a short-term hospitalization loop until her days are up. only THEN does she usually really get the care she needs – state hospital here is MUCH better than the private hospitals. (at least the adolescent one – i dont know anything about adult services.)
i hope you will update and tell us if you found anything out about the inpatient thing. if they still only give you 30 days then that’s not falling in with the policy change. if they somehow find a loophole to exempt it, well, i hope they all burn in hell.
Limiting inpatient days just doesn’t make sense. If they can legally limit how many days they will pay for inpatient mental health care, then in my opinion the law failed because that isn’t the same as the coverage for medical care.
I am insured through Blue Cross Blue Shield, which is a major insurance company. If they found a way to circumvent it then others will too. I may just have to call and ask them about it.
Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits | All About Bipolar: A personal blog describing the day to day strugg.. http://bit.ly/O0G3j
Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits | All About Bipolar: A personal blog describing the day to day strugg.. http://bit.ly/O0G3j
Mental Health Parity Act changes benefits | All About Bipolar: A personal blog describing the day to day strugg.. http://bit.ly/O0G3j