Rochester PB: House panel passes Wellstone Mental Health Parity Act

The Rochester Post Bulletin reports in House panel passes mental health bill named for Wellstone:

A day after the Senate passed legislation that would require equal health insurance coverage for mental and physical illnesses when policies include both, the House took a step toward passing a similar bill.

The House Ways and Means health subcommittee approved the "Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act" Wednesday, named for the late Minnesota Democratic senator who championed the issue for years. The bill now goes to the full committee for a vote.

This is a lovely retirement present for Congressman Ramstad, who along with the late Paul Wellstone championed equity in health insurance coverage. We hope that the bill wil soon come to a vote on the House floor, and President Bush will sign it.   The article cites Ramstad's hope for this bill::

"This landmark bill to provide greater access to treatment is the legacy I want to leave to millions of Americans suffering from mental illness and addiction," said Ramstad, who is retiring from Congress after next year. "Patrick Kennedy and I look forward to dedicating this landmark parity law to the memory of its original author and our friend, Paul Wellstone."

Like every member of Minnesota's congressional delegation with the exception of Bachmann and Kline, Representative Walz is a co-sponsor of the bill.

 

Comments

[TruBluNu]

Bachmann and Kline seem to be holding to their principle of not putting their name on a bill as a co-sponsor if it's a 'Democrat Bill' with a non-GOP author.