U.S. Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-R.I.) and Jim Ramstad (R-Minn.) are hosting a series of public hearings on parity insurance coverage for addiction and mental health and say they plan to reintroduce legislation to require group health plans to cover these conditions on par with other health problems.

Meanwhile, a new survey says that strong majorities of Americans want to put an end to insurance discrimination against addiction and mental health care -- discrimination that the U.S. General Accounting Office says occurs in 90 percent of U.S. health plans (PDF of Mental Health Parity Act report).

The two lawmakers -- co-chairs of the bipartisan Congressional Addiction, Treatment and Recovery Caucus -- traveled this week to Kennedy's home state of Rhode Island to hold the first public hearing, which included testimony from the leaders of the three largest health insurers in the state as well as members of the public, employers, mental-health advocates, and healthcare professionals. James Purcell, the CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island, said his company supports mental-health parity and that restrictions on the number of office visits people can make for mental-health problems were a mistake.

"Who are the people that are most likely going to need those extra visits? They're people who are really in tough shape," he said at the Campaign to Insure Mental Health and Addiction Equity hearing at the Rhode Island State House on Jan. 16. "Where do they end up? In the emergency room."

Kennedy said the goal of the hearings is to "compile testimony from Americans across the country in an effort to pass the most responsible and comprehensive federal equity bill possible."

Kennedy and Ramstad said they will soon reintroduce the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act, which would bar health plans with 50 or more members from setting different reimbursement, copays, deductibles and limits for mental illnesses than for physical illnesses.

With New Congress, New Hope for Parity

In the past, the Wellstone parity legislation garnered enough support for passage in both the House and Senate, but a vote on the measure was repeatedly blocked by the former Republican leadership in the House. Kennedy said he has received assurances from the new Democratic House leaders that the measure would be allowed to come to the floor for a vote once it winds its way through the committee process.

"The American people should not be forced to wait any longer for Congress to knock down the barriers to treatment for mental illness and chemical addiction," said Ramstad, who chided the former GOP leaders for letting ideology triumph over science.

Ramstad frequently offers details of his own recovery from addiction in his call for parity insurance coverage. President Bush, who has admitted his own past struggles with alcohol abuse, indicated in 2002 that he would sign a mental-health parity bill, but has not staked a particular position on the Wellstone act.

Currently scheduled hearings on the parity bill include Jan. 22 in Minneapolis, Jan. 29 in Rockville, Md., Feb. 10 in Los Angeles, and Feb. 17 in Vancouver, Wash. Local members of Congress who have signed onto the parity measure will coordinate the regional hearings.

Other events are also in the works, according to Kennedy's office, including hearings organized by Mental Health America (formerly the National Mental Health Association) and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).

Public Support for 'Long Overdue' Legislation

This week, Mental Health America and NAMI released a national survey that found that 89 percent of Americans support parity insurance coverage for mental illness and that 74 percent support addiction parity. Support for parity was strong among both Democrats and Republicans and employers and employees, according to researchers.

"For too long, insurance companies have offered limited or negligible mental health and substance abuse coverage," said David Shern, president and CEO of Mental Health America. "The myth propelling mental-health inequity in insurance coverage -- that improving coverage would bear too much cost to businesses -- instead robs U.S. businesses and governments of millions of dollars each year and costs our society productive citizens and healthy families. This survey demonstrates that Americans agree -- regardless of political affiliations -- that equitable mental health care is long overdue."