Insurers Recoil from the High Cost of Mental Illness
Consider this startling stat from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH):
An estimated 26.2 percent of Americans ages 18 and older — about one in four adults — suffer from a diagnosable mental disorder in a given year.
According to this story from Post, a quarter of that quarter has it so bad their daily functioning is compromised.
The NIMH adds that mental disorders are “the leading cause of disability in the U.S. and Canada for ages 15-44.”
Mental health treatment is one of the big drivers of health care cost inflation, and as you might guess, health insurers are trying to find ways to reduce outlay. One tactic that’s proven effective (if unpopular) is to deny individual coverage to anyone who has taken a red-flag raising medication—such as an anti-depressant.
MSN Money’s Debora Vrana has a comprehensive article on this practice. Her story is entitled “Prozac: Hazard to your health insurance.” It’s worth a read.
Vrana says people who have sought mental health treatment regret letting their insurer pick up the tab, as they’ve been branded “insurance untouchables.”
Because insurers are so skittish, many therapists and counselors warn their patients to keep their mental health history under the radar and pay for treatment out of pocket.
“The moment I give them a label, it can follow them for their entire life. I really worry about that,” says Dr. Peter Gumpert, a therapist quoted in the article. “This whole thing has a chilling effect on people getting the help they need.”
Read the entire article.
