ACA/AMHCA Alert: Call Your Senators and Representative to Urge Action on Parity Legislation

Millions of Americans with mental and addictive disorders are forced to go without needed care because of health insurance discrimination, in the form of arbitrary limits on care, higher deductibles and co-payments, and refusal to cover certain diagnoses. Legislation is pending in both the Senate (S. 558) and House (H.R. 1424) to require health plans to provide coverage for mental and addictive disorders at parity with other types of health conditions.

S. 558, a compromise negotiated over the previous two years, passed the Senate under unanimous consent on September 18. H.R. 1424, approved by three House committees, will next go to the Rules Committee and the House Floor. We hope that the negotiations that are now underway between the Senate and House are successful in devising one compromise bill that can pass both the Senate and House.

This session of Congress will end around December 21. If parity is not passed by then the issue will lapse into 2008, when many expect it will be lost in an election year deadlock. With one massive grassroots telephone call-in day we hope to impress Congress with a united front that says the parity issue must not be set aside.

ACTION NEEDED: On Friday, December 7th, ACA and AMHCA members are urged to use the toll-free Parity Hotline, 1-866-PARITY4 (1-866-727-4894), to call your representative and senators and leave a message urging their active support for the mental health and addiction parity legislation. (The Parity Hotline reaches the U.S. Capitol switchboard, which can connect callers to the offices of their members.)

TARGETS: All members of the Senate and House.  To find the names of your Senators and Representatives go to www.capwiz.com/counseling.

MESSAGE: “I am calling to ask the Senator/Representative to not let another year go by without passing mental health and addiction parity legislation. Please work with the Leadership to pass parity now.”

Again, the toll free number is 1-866-727-4894 and will be active Friday, December 7th.  

Please feel free to contact either Scott Barstow with the American Counseling Association (800-347-6649, ext. 234; sbarstow@counseling.org) or Beth Powell with the American Mental Health Counselors Association (800-326-2642, ext. 105; bpowell@amhca.org) should you have any questions.