Washington Watch
One More Year For Mental Health Parity
In late November, the House and Senate approved and sent to President Bush a bill to extend the expiring Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 for one more year—until December 31, 2003. The Health Parity Act that was extended was originally included in the 1996 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and bars most group health insurance plans from imposing lower annual or lifetime dollar limits for mental health services than for other medical services. President Bush is expected to sign the bill (H.R. 5716). Congress did not vote this year on proposed legislation (co-sponsored by the late Sen. Wellstone) that would expand the Mental Health Parity Act. Such legislation must be reintroduced to the new 108th Congress next year.
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