I used to get emails from a political action group that supported family and traditional values. There have been a few times they took a position against something that I was working for, almost always having to do with support for people with mental illness. A couple of weeks ago they sent one asking us to fight against mental health parity:

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House Attempts to Expand List of “Mental Disorders” Covered by Employers
Urge your Representative to Vote NO on the Mental Health Equity Act!

Most Americans probably hear the phrase “more affordable health care” roll off the lips of certain presidential candidates on a daily basis, so why are Members of Congress trying to pass a bill that they claim would “increase coverage,” but would actually make it more expensive?

This Wednesday, March 5th, the House is scheduled to vote on the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007 (H.R. 1424). Introduced by Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), H.R. 1424 would impose federal mandates on both private insurance companies and on employers who choose to offer mental health coverage as part of their group health insurance plans. The bill would incorporate into federal statute the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) as the basis for which group health plans offer coverage for mental health conditions. The DSM-IV classifies a variety of mental disorders. The following is just a sampling of those diagnoses for which employers would be mandated to provide benefits: nightmare disorder, caffeine-induced sleep disorder, caffeine intoxication, sibling relational problems, academic problems, substance-induced sexual dysfunction, and pedophilia.

Other problems with H.R. 1424:

Increases the cost of Health Insurance. CBO estimates that this bill will impose mandates on private companies totaling $3 billion a year by 2012. By increasing the cost of coverage, the risk of greater numbers of uninsured Americans rises, as some employers may decide to drop group health insurance coverage altogether or not offer mental health coverage at all in order to avoid conflicting with strict state regulations.

Codifies a Treatment Mandate. Incorporating the DSM-IV list of mental disorders into federal law will obligate employers to cover “disorders” such as “jet lag,” “caffeine intoxication,” and “transvestic fetishism.”

Does not contain a “conscience clause.” The bill does not contain an exemption for health insurance groups or businesses to exclude coverage of disorders for which they have a religious or moral objection, e.g. pedophilia.


H.R. 1424 was placed on the suspension calendar, which means that no amendments may be offered and a two-thirds majority is necessary for passage. Currently, the bill has 273 cosponsors, so it is clear that the bill has close to two-thirds support. View the list of co-sponsors. Call your Representative today and tell them you have major objections to this bill!

Take Action

Urge your Representative to vote NO on H.R. 1424 today!



Call Your Representatives Today!

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I couldn't believe that a group that I support would be against help for people who need it, but apparently they are. I sent them the following reply, and have apparently been kicked off the list because I have not heard anything else from them since.

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It's issues like this one where I do know a lot about what is at stake, that cause me to question supporting the *****. I have suffered from mental illness throughout my life. My depression and anxiety have limited or delayed my growth and development in all areas of my life from the time that I was a child, and still are painful and sometimes debilitating. These are real illnesses that have a very real impact on physical and spiritual health as well as emotional, social, and psychological (which I consider every bit as important, although I question that the ***** values emotional, social, and psychological well-being).

I am familiar with the DSM-IV, as I am now a counselor intern.. The attached flyer suggests that we should not have mental health equity because the DSM-IV classifies various sleep disorders and adjustment problems. The flyer selects various classifications that are rarely if ever the main focus of any mental health treatment, while deliberately refraining from mentioning the very serious and often life-threatening conditions that people seek treatment for, including schizophrenia, eating disorders, major depression, autism, etc. People die from these disorders. My brother did die from some of these disorders. He committed suicide one year ago, after being denied treatment for his schizophrenia, depression, and pervasive developmental disorder. I have come all too close to succumbing to suicide too many times myself. I do not have health insurance through my employer because they don't offer mental health coverage, and that is the main thing that I need from health insurance. Without that, it's worthless to me.

Although I support the family and traditional values, I never asked to receive these emails. In fact, you are sending them to my private email address that is not to be given out to anyone. I'm not sure how you got that address (I am replying from a different one). At this point, I am not at all sure that I want to be associated with this group. There is something fishy about any group that strives to tell people how to vote or how to think. I would be much more interested if you were presenting objective information about issues that affect families and values, and then encouraged people to pray about it and choose what they feel is best, using their own agency.

Please do support Mental Health Equity. It is sorely needed, and there is no conflict between the importance of mental health services availability and family or traditional values. Mental health services often support families, as they well should.

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Feeling under attack from both sides is a very lonely place to be.