Washington State Fines UnitedHealthcare $500,000 For Mental Health Parity Violations

The Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) imposed a $500,000 fine against UnitedHealthcare Insurance Company (UHIC) for failing to demonstrate how it administers its mental health and addiction disorder benefits in accordance with state and federal laws. However, half the fine is suspended if UHIC adheres to a compliance plan.

The OIC had required all insurers to respond to a data call in 2019 and 2020 to identify barriers to mental health services. Based on UHIC’s responses, OIC determined that the company may not have followed state and federal mental health parity requirements. That sparked the . . .