House Committee Passes Mental Health Insurance Bill

"It doesn't get any bigger than this."
--President of the Oregon Senate, Peter Courtney (D)

An exciting report from OPB:
In a surprise move, a committee in the Oregon House has approved a bill to require health insurance companies to provide the same level of coverage for mental illnesses as they do for physical ailments.
Senate Bill 1 is now headed for a vote on the floor of the Republican House.
It may go down as one of the most significant measures approved by state lawmakers this session.

This year, advocates for the mentally ill have been blanketing the state capitol, lobbying to require insurance companies to cover mental illnesses the same as they would cover a physical treatments.

Advocates for the mentally ill faced a powerful array of insurance companies and business lobbyists arguing that as a rule state mandates for health coverage drive up the cost of health care.

Elise Brown, with a trade group that lobbies for the largest insurance companies in the state, made that case before the House committee, adding that her own sister has a mental illness.

But one study of the mental health coverage for state employees showed that parity drove up costs by just one half of one per cent.

Business groups say this state mandate would likely mean more than that, as much as two and a half per cent, according to Lisa Trussel with Associated Oregon Industries.

She says even a small increase in costs could push some workers out of the insurance market.

But activists in favor of parity said lost work days due to depression and drug and alcohol addiction are far more expensive.

What's more, the bill could save the state in the long run with less jail time for mentally ill people.

In the end, the House Committee on State and Federal Affairs sided with mental health advocates by passing the parity bill, something that surprised even the sponsor Senate Bill 1, Democratic Senate President Peter Courtney.

He was convinced the measure would die just as it had in previous sessions.

Peter Courtney: "For me personally, the most veteran member of the legislature, this will probably be my greatest piece of legislation that I was involved with. It doesn't get any bigger than this."

Still, insurance parity is a key part of larger discussions over mental health in the state, including the future of the crumbling Oregon State Hospital.

State lawmakers plan to spend $350,000 for a study on how to replace the 122 year institution.

Democratic Governor Ted Kulongoski said this bill will play a large role in that future.

Ted Kulongoski: "Because if we can get more people that have access to mental health services in the beginning, then I have fewer of them showing up in the corrections system and I have fewer of them showing up in acute situations where in fact that it ends up costing us much more money."

Apart from the financial considerations, Kulongoski said mental health parity is simply the right thing to do.

A vote by the full House is expected in the next several days.

Colin Fogarty - OPB