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Remembering Senator Paul Wellstone – NAMI Marks Anniversary of His Tragic Death With Call to Action on Insurance Parity Legislation

October 25 will mark the 1^st anniversary of the passing of an unrivaled champion for people living with severe mental illness and their families – Senator Paul Wellstone. In memory of his legacy and in celebration of his life, NAMI advocates are urged to call their members of Congress this week and urge immediate action on mental illness insurance parity legislation (S 486/HR 953 – the Paul Wellstone Mental Health Equitable Treatment Act of 2003).

Action Needed on Parity Legislation to Mark Anniversary of Senator Wellstone’s Death

Paul Wellstone’s life and service in the United States Senate was grounded in his personal experience as a family member of a brother living with schizophrenia and his unending quest to end discrimination against children and adults living with mental illness. While his work was not finished before his death, his legacy of activism lives on. In the year since his passing, a bipartisan coalition of Senators and House members has continued the cause for which worked for passionately – legislation to require health plans to cover treatment for mental illness on the same terms and conditions as all other illnesses – insurance parity. This legislation remains stalled in Congress, despite support from 66 Senators, 243 House members and President Bush.

Advocates are urged to call their members of Congress and urge them to move the Paul Wellstone Mental Health Equitable Treatment Act of 2003 forward immediately and pass it before Congress adjourns for the year. Senators should especially be urged to contact Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) and Senate HELP Committee Chairman Judd Gregg (R-NH). Likewise, House members should be urged to contact Speaker Dennis Hastert (R-IL) and the Chairmen of the three House Committees that continue to delay action on parity legislation: Chairman John Boehner (R-OH) of Education and the Workforce, W.J. (Billy) Tauzin (R-LA) of Energy and Commerce and Bill Thomas (R-CA) of Ways and Means.

All Senators and House members can be reached through the toll-free Parity Hotline, 1-866-PARITY4 (1-866-727-4894). The Parity Hotline reaches the Capitol Switchboard, which can connect callers to their members of Congress.

When calling members of Congress, remind them that:

• President Bush supports efforts in Congress to pass a federal parity bill and on April 29, 2002 declared "Senator Domenici and I share this commitment: health plans should not be allowed to apply unfair treatment limitations or financial requirements on mental health benefits. It is critical that we provide full mental health parity and that we do not significantly run up the cost of health care,"

• untreated mental illness costs American businesses, government and families at least $79 billion annually in lost productivity and unemployment, broken lives and broken families, emergency room visits, homelessness and unnecessary use of jails and prisons,

• mental illnesses such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder and severe anxiety disorders are real illnesses,
• treatment for mental illness works, if you can get it – treatment efficacy rates for most severe mental illnesses exceed those for heart disease and diabetes,
• there is simply no scientific or medical justification for insurance coverage of mental illness treatment to be on different terms and conditions than other diseases,
• discriminatory insurance coverage of mental illness bankrupts families and places a tremendous burden on taxpayers through suicide, homelessness and inappropriate "criminalization" of mental illness,
• parity is affordable for employers and health plans – the Congressional Budget Office estimates that this legislation will result in premium increases of only .9% -- costs that are far outweighed by lower absenteeism and higher productivity when mental illness is treated earlier, and
• 34 states have enacted parity laws similar to S 486/HR 953, but even these laws offer no protection for workers and their families that receive coverage through self-insured ERISA plans.

 

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