A group of major health insurance carriers in Connecticut have been cited for violating mental health parity laws, potentially limiting coverage to mental health care and raising concern that people may be priced out from seeking treatment.
Five carriers were cited in a recent report from the Connecticut Insurance Department for not providing coverage for mental health conditions at the same level as physical illnesses.
State law requires the insurers to submit annual data to the department, which is reviewed to ensure that mental health and substance use disorder benefits are treated the same as medical and surgical benefits.
But the report found Aetna, Anthem, ConnectiCare, Cigna and UnitedHealthcare’s coverage of mental health treatment fell short of the coverage they provided for physical illnesses.
The data showed lower reimbursement rates for mental health and substance use disorder providers, higher out of network utilization rates, lower new patient acceptance rates, longer patient wait times for appointments.
The insurers did not respond to a request for comment. Instead, an Anthem spokesperson directed the query to the Connecticut Association of Health Plans (CTAHP) – a group representing insurance companies.
The association said in a statement that its members were in the process of understanding the department’s findings, and were identifying ways to comply with federal and state requirements.
“While there may be different perspectives on how certain standards are applied in practice, carriers remain committed to working collaboratively with the Department of Insurance to advance mental health parity,” Susan Halpin, the association’s executive director, said.
As a result of the report, the affected carriers will be required to submit corrective action plans to the insurance department.
Fines for the insurers referenced in the report have not yet been finalized, according to a spokesperson for the Connecticut Insurance Department.