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Understanding Mental Health Insurance: Coverage, Generosity, and Parity

This study presented at the AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting in 2004 explores the coverage, generosity, and parity of mental health insurance in the United States. It addresses questions on the number of Americans with mental health insurance, the generosity of benefits, and the impact of state and federal parity laws. Key findings reveal disparities in coverage and benefits, highlighting the need for improved parity laws and more comprehensive mental health insurance policies to ensure adequate coverage for all individuals.

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Understanding Mental Health Insurance: Coverage, Generosity, and Parity

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  1. Mental Health Insurance: Coverage, Generosity, and Parity Myles Maxfield Lori Achman AcademyHealth Annual Research Meeting June 8, 2004

  2. Agenda • Questions we addressed • Data sources • Key findings

  3. Questions Addressed • How many Americans have mental health insurance benefits? • How generous are those benefits? • What is the population subject to state parity laws and to the federal Mental Health Parity Act?

  4. Data Sources • March 2000 Current Population Survey (CPS) • 1999 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey-Insurance Component (MEPS-IC) • 1999 National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans by Mercer Worldwide • Reference period - 1999

  5. Key FindingsCoverage, Generosity, and Parity

  6. Sources of Health Insurance, 1999

  7. Mental Health Coverage, 1999

  8. Mental Health Benefit Generosity, 1999

  9. Parity of Mental Health Benefits, 1999

  10. Parity Laws

  11. State Parity Laws, 1999 • 13 states had laws requiring full financial parity • Key state-to-state variations: • Small business exemption • Rate of self-insurance in the state • 8% of private, employer-sponsored health insurance market covered

  12. If All States Had a Parity Law, 1999

  13. Federal Mental Health Parity Act

  14. Federal Parity Law • Federal Mental Health Parity Act of 1999 did not offer full financial parity in benefits • The law covered 70% of private, employer-sponsored health insurance market

  15. MHPA Coverage, 1999

  16. Key Findings • 76% of Americans had mental health benefits. • 44% of Americans had mental health benefits that met the generosity benchmark. • If all states had mental health parity laws, 25% of Americans would be covered. • The Mental Health Parity Act covered 42% of Americans. • Several public health insurance programs were not at parity.

  17. Conclusions • Mental health coverage is driven by health coverage. • Many with mental health coverage did not have benefits that met the generosity benchmark. • Some public programs did not meet the benchmark and were not at parity. • Exemptions and exclusions limited coverage of the Mental Health Parity Act and state parity laws.

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