[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 42 (Wednesday, March 12, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E360-E362]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     PAUL WELLSTONE MENTAL HEALTH AND ADDICTION EQUITY ACT OF 2007

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. JIM RAMSTAD

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 5, 2008

  Mr. Ramstad. Mr. Speaker, I would like to have the following letters 
of support for H.R. 1424, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and 
Addiction Equity Act, submitted for the record on the floor debate of 
this bill.

                                                     Hazelden,

                                   Center City, MN, March 3, 2008.
     Hon. Nancy Pelosi,
     Speaker of the House of Representatives, Capitol Building, 
         Washington, DC.
     Hon. John Boehner,
     Republican Leader, House of Representatives, Capitol 
         Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Speaker Pelosi and Leader Boehner: On behalf of the 
     Hazelden Foundation, I am writing to express our strong 
     support for H.R. 1424, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and 
     Addiction Equity Act. This landmark legislation would 
     prohibit insurance discrimination against 80 million 
     Americans suffering from addiction and mental illness.
       I am writing because our country cannot afford the 
     continued burden of untreated addiction and mental illness. 
     Untreated addiction costs Americans $400 billions annually

[[Page E361]]

     and is more expensive than 3 of the Nation's top 10 killers: 
     6 times more expensive than America's number one killer: 
     heart disease ($133.2 billion/year), 6 times more than 
     diabetes ($130 billion/year), 4 times more than cancer ($96.1 
     billion/year).
       The time for the passage of parity is now. Over 25 million 
     people need mental health and addiction treatment but are not 
     getting it. Legislation to bring full equity to mental health 
     coverage has been introduced in the House in every Congress 
     since the 107th session but until this year, it never 
     received consideration in committees or on the floor despite 
     bipartisan majority cosponsorship. Now, H.R. 1424, introduced 
     by Representatives Patrick Kennedy (D-RI); and Jim Ramstad 
     (R-MN), has the support of the majority of the House with 273 
     cosponsors. The bill has been favorably reported by the Ways 
     and Means, Energy and Commerce and Education and Labor 
     Committees. In 2007, fourteen different field hearings were 
     held around the country and included testimony from employers 
     and insurers. These hearings documented the need for equity 
     in health plans for the treatment of addiction and mental 
     illness. The record shows parity is a priority that must be 
     passed now.
       We are hopeful the House of Representatives will pass H.R. 
     1424 this week with a strong bipartisan majority. The 
     Hazelden Foundation stands ready to assist you toward the 
     goal of achieving access to treatment for addiction in health 
     plans for all Americans.
           Sincerely,
                                                 Nicholas T. Motu,
                         Senior Vice President and COO Publishing.
                                  ____
                                  


                             Federation of American Hospitals,

                                    Washington, DC, March 3, 2008.
     Speaker Nancy Pelosi,
     U.S. Congress,
     Washington, DC.
     Minority Leader John Boehner,
     U.S. Congress,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Speaker Pelosi and Leader Boehner: The Federation of 
     American Hospitals (FAH), representing America's investor-
     owned and managed hospitals and health systems, supports 
     swift passage of the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and 
     Addiction Equity Act of 2007 (H.R. 1424). This legislation 
     will provide greatly needed access to mental health treatment 
     for Americans who need it most.
       This bipartisan legislation would end prevalent forms of 
     health insurance discrimination against patients with 
     debilitating chronic mental illnesses. Additionally, H.R. 
     1424 will assist millions of Americans in obtaining the 
     necessary hospital care they need and were previously denied 
     because of inadequate mental health coverage.
       H.R. 1424 is paid for, in part, by prohibiting physician 
     self-referral to a hospital in which a physician has an 
     ownership interest. Physician self-referral presents an 
     inherent conflict of interest, creates an unlevel, anti-
     competitive playing field; threaten patient safety; fail low-
     income and uninsured patients; and, has resulted in the 
     overutilization of limited Medicare resources. We strongly 
     support this provision.
       We deeply appreciate Congress' ongoing commitment to mental 
     health parity and strengthening the Medicare program.
           Sincerely,
     ------ ------.
                                  ____

         Children and Adults With Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity 
           Disorders,
                                      Landover, MD, March 4, 2008.
     Hon. Patrick J. Kennedy,
     House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Congressman Kennedy: On behalf of Children and Adults 
     with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorders (CHADD), we 
     write in strong support of the Paul Wellstone Mental Health 
     and Addiction Equity Act of 2007, which will be debated this 
     week in the U.S. House of Representatives. We write to urge 
     all Members of Congress to vote for passage of this 
     legislation.
       Currently, 113 million Americans face higher payments and 
     stricter coverage limits for some illnesses than for others 
     because their health plans discriminate against them. For 
     example, many health plans pay more of the expenses for 
     diabetes than for depression or attention-deficit/
     hyperactivity disorder (AD/HD), though all can be serious, 
     chronic conditions requiring intensive, long-term treatment. 
     Of they pay more for Parkinson's and Alzheimer's than for 
     schizophrenia, though all affect the structure and function 
     of the brain. We cannot let this continue.
       Disparity in mental health coverage disproportionately 
     affects low-income and minority populations who may not have 
     access to care, in part because they can't afford to pay the 
     extra out-of-pocket expenses, or because they cannot access 
     health care providers. Some families have to relinquish 
     custody of their children in order to get needed treatment. 
     We all pay the price when mental health and substance abuse 
     issues are not addressed.
       The Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act 
     of 2007 will end insurance discrimination by providing equal 
     coverage for health and mental health/substance abuse 
     treatment, including days/visits covered, cost caps, 
     coinsurance, co-payments, deductibles and out-of-pocket 
     costs.
       This legislation will help many children and adults--
     including children and adults with AD/HD--to access the 
     mental health and substance abuse treatment they need. We 
     strongly support this legislation, and urge all Member of 
     Congress to vote YES on this important bill.
       Thank you for your leadership on this issue.
           Sincerely,
                                                   E. Clarke Ross,
     CEO.
                                  ____

     Hon. Patrick J. Kennedy,
     House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
     Hon. Jim Ramstad,
     House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Representatives Kennedy and Ramstad: I am writing on 
     behalf of the American Counseling Association (ACA) to 
     express our strong support for your legislation H.R. 1424, 
     the ``Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity 
     Act.'' ACA is the Nation's largest non-profit membership 
     organization representing the counseling profession, which 
     includes more than 100,000 professional counselors licensed 
     in 49 states and the District of Columbia.
       Mental and addiction disorders are real, and are treatable. 
     For decades, millions of American families experiencing such 
     disorders have had their access to care limited by 
     discriminatory health insurance policies. Your legislation 
     would help end this practice, closing major loopholes in the 
     1996 federal parity law. By requiring group health plans that 
     cover mental health and substance use benefits to do so 
     without different duration limits and financial requirements, 
     this legislation will help millions of people with mental 
     disorders get the care they need.
       Importantly, your legislation also prohibits plans from 
     declining to cover care for certain mental or addictive 
     disorders. giving privately-insured Americans coverage for 
     the same range of conditions for which members of Congress 
     and other federal employees enjoy protection under Federal 
     Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) policies. Your 
     legislation also requires health plans to cover out-of-
     network care for these disorders if they cover out-of-network 
     care for general medical conditions. Patient choice of 
     provider is critically important in mental health treatment, 
     and a plan can hardly be said to be providing parity of 
     coverage if they restrict choice of provider for mental and 
     addictive disorders but don't do so for general medical 
     services.
       We applaud your consistent leadership in championing this 
     landmark legislation, and we urge all House members to vote 
     for H.R. 1424 and against any amendments to weaken its 
     protections. Congress has a chance to take an historic step 
     forward in passing this legislation. We hope that House 
     passage of your strong, bipartisan bill will spur to 
     completion the negotiations with the Senate on legislation 
     that can become law later this year.
           Sincerely,

                                               Brian Canfield,

                                                        President,
     American Counseling Association.
                                  ____



                                   Eating Disorders Coalition,

                                    Washington, DC, March 4, 2008.
     Hon Patrick J. Kennedy,
     House of Representatives
     Washington, DC.
     Hon Jim Ramstad,
     House of Representatives
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Representatives Kennedy and Ramstad: I am writing on 
     behalf of the Eating Disorders Coalition which represents 36 
     different organizations and constituents in all 50 states and 
     the District of Columbia. Our researchers, therapists, 
     prevention experts, and families understand that eating 
     disorders are life-threatening--often deadly--and can linger, 
     diminishing one's quality of life for decades. Unfortunately, 
     our members also know how difficult it is to access care, 
     even under policies that supposedly include mental health 
     coverage.
       We urge House members to bring H.R. 1424, the Paul 
     Wellstone Mental Health & Addiction Equity Act to the floor 
     on March 5, 2008 and vote YES on this important bill,
       Millions of American families face structural 
     discrimination against the mental health benefits in their 
     health coverage. For example, people with eating disorders 
     are often denied services as managed care companies and 
     health care providers struggle with arbitrary interpretations 
     of medical necessity. Your proposed legislation will 
     strengthen the appropriate role of managed care as it also 
     expands access to life-saving mental health services.
       We hope that House passage of your strong bipartisan bill 
     will lead to the completion of negotiations with the Senate 
     on a bill that can become law this year. Additionally we urge 
     that the broad-based definition of mental disorders that is a 
     cornerstone of H.R 1424 remain intact as it will ensure that 
     people with eating disorders receive appropriate care.
       It is time that our great nation takes the next step to 
     advance care for people with mental health needs.

[[Page E362]]

       We thank you for your leadership on this important issue.
           Sincerely.
                                                       Marc Lerro,
     Executive Director.

                          ____________________