Joyce Mental Health Parity Amendment Adopted in Senate Budget

Under the Joyce amendment, insurers will be required to provide information to consumers about how to appeal a denial of mental health coverage to the Office of Patient Protection (OPP). The OPP will review the appeal and report overturned denials to the Division of Insurance, who will then investigate the claim to see if there has been a denial of legally required parity. If there has been a denial, the insurer will be subject to a fine of not less than $25,000. If there is a pattern or practice by an insurer to deny parity rights, the Division of Insurance will levy an additional fine of not less than $100,000.“With this law, we will finally put teeth into the well-intended mental health parity laws and defend the rights of our often defenseless brothers and sisters who suffer from mental illness and substance abuse issues,” said Joyce.In 2000 the Massachusetts Legislature passed a mental health parity law with the federal government following suit in 2008. The law says that if an insurance company offers and provides any mental health or substance abuse care, it must be equal to the coverage for physical treatments. However, since the law’s passage, many residents have encountered constant denials and lengthy delays in accessing necessary mental health and substance abuse services.