1/11/2021 MHAMD Weekly Legislative Update
Advocacy, Advocacy & Public Policy, community behavioral health providers, grassroots organizing, health insurance, keep the door open, legislative briefing, Legislative Wrap-Ups, Maryland Behavioral Health Coalition, Maryland General Assembly, Maryland Insurance Administration, Maryland Parity, Mental Health, MHAMD, Network Adequacy, resources
It’s a new year and the Maryland General Assembly is set to convene for the 442nd time this Wednesday, January 13 at noon. This session will look and feel a lot different than usual – most of the proceedings will be conducted virtually – but the resulting policy and budgetary actions will impact Marylanders just the same. …
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Open Enrollment for Health Insurance Has Arrived, Here Are Resources About Mental Health Coverage
All Categories, health insurance, Mental Health Insurance, parity, Parity laws
Today marks the beginning of Open Enrollment for the health care marketplace for 2019 coverage. It runs through December 15, 2018 (although some states may offer longer enrollment periods). To look into coverage options, visit here. For Maryland residents, you can visit the Maryland Health Connection.
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New consumer advocate finds her voice
Adults, Behavioral Health, grassroots organizing, health insurance, Maryland, Maryland Mental Health, Maryland Parity, Mental Health, Network Adequacy, parity
A guest post from consumer advocate Jessica S.: As a consumer of behavioral health services for many years, it was not until I pursued specialty treatment for PTSD that I learned the depth of the injustice to behavioral health consumers done by insurance companies. It was an accepted norm that the therapy I needed would …
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Breaking the ice and starting the conversation about mental health
Advocacy & Public Policy, All Categories, Behavioral Health, children's mental health, children's mental health matters, health insurance, Maryland, Maryland Mental Health, Mental Health, stigma, volunteer
Earlier this week, six runners left California on the IceBreaker Run. These six runners will run a marathon each day as they travel from California to Virginia, stopping along the way to start community conversations about mental health. The six runners have diverse backgrounds and experiences, but each one has had their life touched …
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Network Adequacy Series, Part II: What are state and federal regulators doing about it?
All Categories, health insurance, Maryland Parity, Network Adequacy, parity
In the first part of this series, we defined network adequacy and explained why it was critically important to ensure access to care for insured individuals. While most people agree that this issue is a top priority, there has been very little movement in some states to provide more consumer protections. In Maryland Maryland …
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Network Adequacy Series, Part I: What is all the fuss?
All Categories, health insurance, Maryland Parity, Network Adequacy, parity
A network adequacy report MHAMD released in January 2015 sparked a firestorm of debate early in the legislative session. The finding that only 14% of the 1,154 psychiatrists listed on the Maryland Health Benefit Exchange (MHBE) Qualified Health Plan networks were accepting new patients within 45 days was widely quoted by advocates, the press …
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Proposed Bill Could Potentially Decrease MD Funding
All Categories, health insurance, Maryland Parity, Network Adequacy, parity
On December 12th, 2013, Representative Tim Murphy (R – Pa) introduced the bill “Helping Families in Mental Crises Act of 2013” that aims to decrease mental health spending and increase mental illness spending. Within the 135-page document, Congressman Murphy highlights a number of changes he believes will fix the mental health system, such as creating an …
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