[Congressional Bills 106th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2445 Introduced in House (IH)]







106th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2445

   To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, the 
  Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 
   clarify the application of the mental health parity provisions to 
 annual and lifetime visit or benefit limits, as well as dollar limits.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 1, 1999

   Mrs. Maloney of New York (for herself, Mr. Gilman, Mr. Engel, Mr. 
Towns, Mrs. McCarthy of New York, Mr. McNulty, Mr. Nadler, Mr. Serrano, 
 Mr. Menendez, Mr. Ackerman, and Mr. Hinchey) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Commerce, and in addition 
 to the Committees on Education and the Workforce, and Ways and Means, 
for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case 
for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of 
                        the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, the 
  Public Health Service Act, and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 
   clarify the application of the mental health parity provisions to 
 annual and lifetime visit or benefit limits, as well as dollar limits.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Mental Health Parity Enhancement Act 
of 1999''.

SEC. 2. APPLICATION OF MENTAL HEALTH PARITY PROVISIONS TO ANNUAL AND 
              LIFETIME VISIT OR BENEFIT LIMITS.

    (a) Amendments to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 
1974.--Section 712(e) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 
1974 (29 U.S.C. 1185a(e)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting after ``a dollar 
        limitation on the total amount that may be paid'' the 
        following: ``or a number or visits or other limitation on the 
        benefits that may be covered''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting after ``a dollar 
        limitation on the total amount of benefits that may be paid'' 
        the following: ``or a number of visits or other limitation on 
        the benefits that may be covered''.
    (b) Amendments to the Public Health Service Act.--Section 2705(e) 
of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-5(e)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting after ``a dollar 
        limitation on the total amount that may be paid'' the 
        following: ``or a number or visits or other limitation on the 
        benefits that may be covered''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting after ``a dollar 
        limitation on the total amount of benefits that may be paid'' 
        the following: ``or a number of visits or other limitation on 
        the benefits that may be covered''.
    (c) Amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.--Section 
9812(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting after ``a dollar 
        limitation on the total amount that may be paid'' the 
        following: ``or a number or visits or other limitation on the 
        benefits that may be covered''; and
            (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting after ``a dollar 
        limitation on the total amount of benefits that may be paid'' 
        the following: ``or a number of visits or other limitation on 
        the benefits that may be covered''.
    (d) Effective Date.--(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the amendments 
made by this section shall apply with respect to group health plans for 
plan years beginning on or after July 1, 2000.
    (2) In the case of a group health plan maintained pursuant to 1 or 
more collective bargaining agreements between employee representatives 
and 1 or more employers ratified before the date of enactment of this 
Act, the amendments made by this section shall not apply to plan years 
beginning before the later of--
            (A) the date on which the last collective bargaining 
        agreements relating to the plan terminates (determined without 
        regard to any extension thereof agreed to after the date of 
        enactment of this Act), or
            (B) January 1, 2001.
For purposes of subparagraph (A), any plan amendment made pursuant to a 
collective bargaining agreement relating to the plan which amends the 
plan solely to conform to any requirement added by this section shall 
not be treated as a termination of such collective bargaining 
agreement.
    (e) Coordinated Regulations.--Section 104(1) of the Health 
Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 is amended by 
striking ``this subtitle (and the amendments made by this subtitle and 
section 401)'' and inserting ``the provisions of part 7 of subtitle B 
of title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, the 
provisions of parts A and C of title XXVII of the Public Health Service 
Act, and chapter 100 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986''.
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