Mental Health Parity Bill Vote Stalled in Congress

July 12, 2004 Mental Health Parity Bill Vote Stalled in Congress House Speaker Dennis Hastert has again declined to schedule a vote on legislation to force health insurers to provide equal coverage for mental and physical illnesses if their policies include both. The original legislation had 69 sponsors in the Senate and 246 sponsors in the House, clear majorities in both. Named for the late Senator Paul Wellstone, who championed the issue, the House version of the Mental Health Equitable Treatment Act of 2003 can be read at www.openminds.com/market-intelligence/resources/ushr953.htm. The Bush administration endorsed . . .