The Biden administration is planning to finalize mental health parity regulations for insurers in July, Politico reported July 8.
The standards were first proposed in July 2023 and would toughen mental health coverage standards for insurers. Under the proposed rules, plans would be required to study the outcomes of their mental health coverage policies, including network size, out-of-network payment policies and prior authorizations.
The administration's proposal would clarify that plans cannot have more restrictive prior authorization standards or narrower networks for mental healthcare than for physical healthcare. The proposed regulations would also close a loophole in the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act that excludes non-federal government health plans from parity standards.
Insurers and employer groups oppose the proposed regulations. The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association argued in a comment letter that the proposed rule could lead to an increase in care that is not clinically recommended.
In an ad campaign, the ERISA Industry Committee, which represents large employers, argued the regulations would add more "red tape" to mental healthcare.