New Mental Health Parity Regs Are Unworkable, Insurers Say

Insurer and plan sponsor trade groups strongly oppose the Biden administration’s stepped-up mental health parity regulations, according to statements and public comment letters submitted in response to the latest rulemaking on the subject. Insurer groups AHIP, the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) and the Alliance of Community Health Plans (ACHP) all lined up against the rulemaking, as did the ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC), a plan sponsor group. 

According to the insurer and plan sponsor groups, the proposed rules, which were released in July, are unworkable. They argue that there are simply not enough providers available to meet the more stringent requirements set out in the proposed regulations. The current round of rules, if implemented, would expand the list of conditions covered by parity rules, require additional data reporting and establish stronger network adequacy standards. Both plan sponsors and carriers could be held liable for violations of most provisions in the Biden administration’s proposed regulations.