Oklahoma lawmakers are working to ensure organizations offering health insurance cover mental health treatment the same way they do medical treatment.
Federal law already mandates mental health parity from group health plans and insurance companies, butSenate Bill 1718 would require it of any entity offering health coverage and regulated by the state insurance department.
Sen. John Michael Montgomery said he does not expect their costs to go up as a result.
"No insurance companies have approached me with detailed analyses of costs or anything like that," Montgomery said.
SB1718 would replace references in state law to "severe mental illness" like schizophrenia that must be covered with the broader "mental health conditions and substance abuse disorder." Sen. John Haste said that will help his plan to enlist doctors to help reduce suicides in the state.
"If we go down this path and, like, a doctor recognizes that someone needs treatment or help related to mental health, suicides and so forth, it’s not always covered. And so, at the end of the day, they’re not going to get help," Haste said.
The bill would also prohibit insurers from imposing different limits on mental health care than they do on comparable medical care.
"This is kind of where cancer was a lot of years ago when the coverage wasn’t happening. Today, it’s just standard coverage. I think it’s very important that we do this to help those that truly are dealing with mental health. I think it’s one of those that could actually save lives," Haste said.
SB1718 passed out of a Senate committee on Monday.
