Following the passage of the Mental Health Parity Act into law earlier this year, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Treasury, and Labor released an interim final rule (IFR) providing guidance on how the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act must be implemented.

Effective Date: The interim Final Rule (IFR) became effective on April 5, 2010 and applies to insurance plans with plan years starting on July 1, 2010 or later.

Plans That Must Comply With The IFR: The IFR applies to group insurance plans of 50 or more people. Although the Wellstone-Domenici law also applies to Medicaid managed care plans, these plans are NOT included in the IFR. Additional guidance on how parity will apply to Medicaid managed care will be released by the Department of Health and Human Services in the future.

Scope of Service: The IFR divides benefits into six classifications:

1. Inpatient, in-network
2. Inpatient, out-of-network 3. Outpatient, in-network
4. Outpatient, out-of-network
5. Emergency care
6. Prescription drugs

For more specific details or to read a brief summary of the provisions of the Mental Health Parity Law:

1. Operational Analysis of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act Interim Final Rule (25 pages, Adobe PDF™ format)

2. APA Analysis: Summary of the Interim Final Rule Implementing the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act

3. FACT SHEET: The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA) - Department of the Treasury, DHHS, Department of Labor(3 pages, Adobe PDF™ format)