THIS IS A PRESS RELEASE FROM THE OFFICE OF UNITED STATES SENATOR JAY ROCKEFELLER.

Washington, DC – A long-time advocate for improving access to mental health services, Senator Jay Rockefeller today celebrated the enactment of legislation that will finally bring insurance coverage for these services in line with traditional health care benefits.

For over 12 years, Senator Rockefeller has passionately argued to change existing laws to help West Virginians of all ages have greater access to mental health and substance abuse programs paid for by their insurance plans. On Friday, those efforts culminated in the enactment of the Mental Health Parity Act of 2008 which finally ends insurance discrimination and will help to reduce the stigma of mental illness.

“This law has been years, if not decades, in the making. Along the way, I’ve been inspired to fight even harder for its passage because West Virginians have shared with me their personal, and sometimes tragic, stories of loved ones who desperately needed mental health or substance abuse counseling,” Rockefeller said. “While it’s important that health care plans provide the best coverage possible for physical conditions like cancer, heart disease or routine medical care, it’s equally important that they provide equal treatment for depression and substance abuse.”

“This legislation is a huge milestone for the more than 735,000 West Virginians who are covered by this law,” Rockefeller said.

Nearly one out of four Americans – 58 million people – will experience a mental illness during any given year. Mental disorders are the leading cause of disability in the United States for people between the ages of 15 and 44. In fact, the impact of mental illness on health and productivity is greater than all cancers combined.

In spite of these statistics, insurance plans have long imposed limits on access to mental health services -- limitations we all would find unacceptable if similarly applied to the treatment of physical illnesses. These limitations have severely impacted families that are on fixed-incomes that have to pay completely out of pocket for essential mental health care services for themselves or their loved ones because their insurance plans fail to cover even the most basic care, limits the number of visits for therapy or worse, excludes certain diagnoses, such as for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Senator Rockefeller fought to eliminate these barriers so that West Virginians of all ages, regardless of how they have health insurance, are able to get the care and treatment they need. The new law puts deductibles, co-payments, out-of-pocket expenses, coinsurance, covered hospital days, and covered out-patient visits on the same footing as fees paid for physical treatments. Senator Rockefeller also fought to make sure the expanded care doesn’t unfairly harm small businesses with fewer than 50 people. He supported a proposal to provide these companies with a total cost exemption to help offset the increased costs to employer-based health care plans.