The Hazelden Blog

With the spotlight on health-care reform – and January being the month when most Americans’ insurance coverage renews – this is an ideal time for Americans to determine how the mental health parity law affects their insurance coverage.

Here are four things consumers can do today to become better informed about their mental health and substance abuse benefits:

1. Call your insurance company and ask if your 2010 plan includes coverage for mental health and substance abuse services. Insurance plans are not required to include coverage for these services, but many plans do, so it is important to check your benefits on an annual basis.
2. If your plan does cover these services, ask for an information sheet that details the annual and lifetime limits, copayments, coinsurance requirements, deductibles, out-of-pocket expenses, levels of care covered, and coverage limits. (Out-of-network facilities are not necessarily out of reach – many plans will cover some portion of care.) Ask for a similar sheet that outlines the coverage for medical and surgical services to see if the coverage is consistent with the coverage for mental health and substance abuse services.
3. If the coverage for mental health and substance abuse services does not seem comparable with the coverage for medical and surgical services, contact your employer’s benefits administrator or HR director and ask why there is a disparity. There are employers that may be exempt from the law, so it is possible that your insurance plan is not affected.
4. If you or a family member are in need of mental health or substance abuse services and are having trouble accessing your level of coverage for treatment, ask the treatment center or medical facility if a case manager or patient advocate is available to help you navigate the process.

The issue of mental health parity and its affect on health insurance coverage is still very much in flux.  You can count on Hazelden to keep you abreast of the development that may affect you. Please check back to the Recovery Resource Blog often.