Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, May 24, 1994 TAG: 9405240064
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By LAURA WILLIAMSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Short
At the urging of Sen. Edward Houck, D-Spotsylvania, a state advisory panel on mandated health insurance benefits recently agreed to appoint a task force to deal with the issue. Mental health advocates are concerned because insurance companies typically pay 80 percent of the cost of treating physical illnesses but only half the cost of treatment for mental illnesses.
That's discriminatory, Houck said.
He hopes that a task force of business leaders, government officials, doctors and patients can find a way to phase in better coverage of mental illnesses in a way acceptable to everyone. Now, it's up to him to figure out how that task force will work.
The Special Advisory Commission on Mandated Health Insurance Benefits, which reviews legislation and reports its findings to the General Assembly, agreed last week to the formation of a task force. The commission asked Houck to work out the details and report back at its June 13 meeting.
Houck said he wanted the group to include a number of business and industry leaders, because those are the people who will have to pick up the extra cost of coverage.
"They will pay the bills if premiums go up," he said.
Houck hopes the task force will make enough progress this year to back legislation in the next session of the General Assembly, perhaps in the area of hospital stays for the severely mentally ill.
"The net goal, of course, would be to have complete parity," he said.
by CNB