ALEXANDRIA, Va. (May 26, 1999) Federal workers and their dependents will soon have full coverage of mental health and substance abuse disorders through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. Tipper Gore, mental health advisor to the White House, today clarified that the new health insurance coverage will be offered regardless of an individual's diagnosis. The proposal will be announced at the June 7th White House Conference on Mental Health.

"Mental health parity for federal workers will give new momentum to parity legislation pending on Capitol Hill," said Michael M. Faenza, president and CEO of the National Mental Health Association. "The new policy will cover 9 million federal workers and their dependents. It represents the first large-scale test of full mental health insurance coverage and provides an excellent gauge for the true cost of parity, which is low."

The Office of Personnel Management estimates that full mental health parity will increase costs by 1 to 3 percent, in keeping with cost experiences in Minnesota and Vermont for comprehensive mental health benefits.

Separate bills on health insurance parity are making their way through Congress. NMHA strongly supports Representative Roukema's (R-NJ) Mental Health Parity Act Amendment of 1999 (HR. 1515). Like Mrs. Gore's proposal, the Roukema legislation calls for full parity in health insurance for all children and adults with mental health and substance abuse disorders. In contrast, the Mental Health Equitable Treatment Act proposed by Senators Domenici (R-NM) and Wellstone (D-MN) is limited to a short list of adult mental illnesses and permits continued discrimination against most children with serious mental and emotional disturbances.

"Full parity through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program will demonstrate to the business community that nondiscriminatory mental health and substance abuse coverage is affordable and a national value," Faenza said. "We can no longer allow excuses of the past to hold sway. The time to enact true parity and to end this vestige of discrimination against people who have mental illnesses is now."

Established in 1909, the National Mental Health Association is a nationwide network of mental health advocates seeking broad-based healthcare reform for all people with mental and emotional disorders.