Welcome to Mental Health Guide
Alabama Department Of Mental Health Article
. For a permanent link to this article, or to bookmark it for further reading, click here.
You may also listen to this article by using the following controls.
The Controversial Mental Health Parity Bill
from:The Mental Health Parity Bill is a bill that was first passed by Congress as the Mental Health Parity Act in 1996 and was created to help give people who needed mental health care but did not have enough money to pay for such care get the attention they needed for their mental health issues. The Mental Health Parity Bill was recently passed and approved by a lower house committee this year and has since then gathered a lot of flack from the people who may need to shell out the money to cover the expenses that this bill will incur.
The Mental Health Parity Bill basically states that insurance companies and employers need to provide equal health care benefits for both physical as well as mental illnesses. This means that aside from physical health care, people who have insurance policies or are employed by certain companies are entitled to mental health care when they need it and the cost for such mental health care should be covered by the insurance company or the employer of the person suffering from the mental health issues they are going through.
The Mental Health Parity Bill is rather controversial since there are really no set boundaries that indicate the true extent of mental issues that may affect the people who claim that they need medical attention for mental health problems. The recently approved Mental Health Parity Bill is also very controversial since the original Mental Health Parity Act had exempted coverage by insurance companies and employers if the expenses incurred by a patient if the mental health problems were proven to have been the result of substance abuse or drug usage. The Mental Health Parity Bill supports that a person is entitled to the same kind of care that they might get if they had cancer or heart disease for problems that involve alcoholism or drug addictions.
The Mental Health Parity Bill is not a welcome development for employers and insurance companies alike since they believe that a lot of people will take advantage of this bill and seek treatment for the smallest possible mental health illness they may think they have. Employers also argue that this kind of a bill will be an added burden to their situation and will only be an additional expense on their part. The probability of this bill creating huge dents in the medical bills and insurance policy payments of companies is pretty real. However, the reason behind the creation and approval of such a bill is noble and admirable despite the lack of concrete guidelines to help keep this bill from being abused.
Alabama Department Of Mental Health Specific links
Alabama Department Of Mental Health News
Hammad Memon murder trial delayed, state will seek mental health evaluation
Madison County Assistant District Attorney Tim Gann said Monday the state is not opposed to the continuance because it gives the prosecution time to have Memon's mental health evaluated by a state doctor.
Read more...New Hope Children's Clinic getting new modular facility
The New Hope Children's Clinic, started in 2009 to treat the underserved children of Madison County, is getting a new modular facility to replace the single-wide trailer it's currently using.
Read more...BP oil spill settlement grants will pay for health, mental health services on Gulf coast
"We'll be out in the field, providing training and consultation services as needed with federally qualified health care centers and community health clinics, " said Dr. Joy Osofsky.
Read more...Commission denies funding request for mental health court
The Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's Office is trying to reduce the number of inmates with mental illness in the jail by creating a mental health court. But, the Tuscaloosa County Commission threw up a road block Wednesday when they voted down a funding request of $10,000.
Read more...Noose found hanging at Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant
The Tennessee Valley Authority says it is investigating after a noose was found at the Browns Ferry Nuclear Plant in Alabama.
Read more...