Possible Problems With the Mental Health Parity Act

My second step-father was a shady man who worked for a shadier company. To be fair he was a man who was a co-dependent which is a mental health issue in its own right. He was a good provider for a while and then turned on my Mom and me. The first company he worked for had me insured for a while until they saw the price of my Risperdal. Then they kicked me off because I was an adult and uncoverable under their rules. So I was on on Medicaid from 1994 until today because my illness was discovered and labeled as pre-existing. I discovered that when I was on a health plan as a VISTA volunteer from 2007-2010 which collected co-payments but refused to cover the costs of any of my doctor’s visits. By then my Mom was once again divorced. In the meantime I learned the second company my former step-father worked for would investigate the health profile of the family of their workers and wouldn’t hire the workers with sick family members. I imagine that is probably going on with the Mental Health Parity Law which is contingent on getting a job in order to get coverage. Another interesting story of a similar vein was a fellow bus rider I befriended for a time who discovered that the cutting back of his hours was against state law. He sued to get his hours back to normal. Of course after he did they were making his life pure heck at work and were looking for an excuse to fire him. As a result he was looking for another place to live. It just goes to show that businesses don’t always follow the rules and whistle blowers pay for standing up to them. I hope this is not happening with the Mental Health Parity Law but with the cost of prescription medicine I wouldn’t be surprised if it weren’t

What is mental health parity law? What country is it in?

The Mental Health Parity Act is a part of Obamacare in the United States. According to its rules the health insurance companies are supposed to cover mental health like any other illness. However you have to have a full time job with a company that has a certain number of employees in order to be covered. It varies by state how many employees that is. My state has lowered the number from 50 to 25 but if they discovered that you had a mental illness they could choose to not hire you in the first place or place you in a part time position. And I think we all are in danger of that. Also the law is in danger of repeal by the Republicans. Of course the Republican nominee may find it in his best interest to replace Obamacare with a Republican plan in order to get elected.

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Thanks for this info…doesn’t sound right at all :confused:

If they do that you can sue them for discrimination, unless you live in an At Will state. Which, sadly, I do.

I live in an At Will State with a few exceptions. Disability is not one of those exceptions.