North Carolina, Rhode Island Approve Health Legislation

Main Category: Schizophrenia
Also Included In: Mental Health;  Health Insurance / Medical Insurance
Article Date: 10 Jul 2007 - 11:00 PDT

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Lawmakers in North Carolina and Rhode Island recently acted on health care legislation. Summaries of news coverage appear below.

• North Carolina: The state Senate on Tuesday approved a bill that would require health insurers in the state to provide the same level of coverage for treatment of severe depression, schizophrenia or other mental illnesses as they do for physical illnesses, the Winston-Salem Journal reports. The bill would apply to all state businesses, regardless of the number of employees, and require full coverage for nine of the most common mental illnesses. Insurers would be able to place restrictions on coverage of other mental illnesses, such as autism and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder. The legislation would not apply to companies that are self-insured. The bill now goes to the state House, which already has approved its own version of mental health parity legislation (Romoser, Winston-Salem Journal, 7/4).
  
  
• Rhode Island: Gov. Don Carcieri (R) last week signed legislation that will require businesses with 25 or more employees to offer workers the opportunity to buy health insurance with pre-tax income, the Providence Journal reports. The tax break is expected to save workers up to 40% of the premium cost, depending on the employee's tax bracket, according to the state Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner. The law requires that businesses set up a payroll deduction mechanism for employees but does not require businesses to pay anything toward their employees' health insurance. Under the law, employees can choose whether to participate in the program, and employers can offer a variety of plans for using the pre-tax dollars, including vision coverage, dental coverage, medical coverage and life insurance. The state Department of Labor and Training will issue regulations to detail the steps businesses must take in order to comply with the law, which will take effect in 2009 (Gudrais, Providence Journal, 7/5).
  

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