HHS, the Department of Labor and the Treasury will not enforce new mental health parity rules for 18 months after litigation challenging them is settled, according to a May 15 statement.
In a May 9 court filing, HHS said it would not enforce mental health parity regulations implemented by the Biden administration in 2024. The ERISA Industry Committee, a group representing large employers, sued to block the rules.
HHS said it will reconsider if and how the 2024 rules will be implemented.
Here are five things to know:
- In the statement, the three departments cited an executive order that directed federal agencies to identify regulations that may be burdensome as a reason for reconsidering the regulations. Executive Order 14219 directs federal agencies to eliminate regulations that undermine national interest, “including by imposing undue burdens on small businesses or significant costs upon private parties that are not outweighed by public benefits.”
- The agencies urged states that are the primary enforcers of mental health parity regulation to take a similar approach to nonenforcement as federal agencies.
- In addition to reevaluating the 2024 rules, the three agencies will each reexamine their mental health parity enforcement approach more broadly.
- The rules implemented by the Biden administration were intended to strengthen enforcement of the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act.
- During the nonenforcement period, HHS and the departments of Labor and Treasury will “remain committed to ensuring that individuals receive protections under the law in a way that is not unduly burdensome for plans and issuers,” the agencies said in the joint statement.
