Pelosi: Passage of Mental Health Parity Bill Gives Hope and Help to Millions of American...

Pelosi: Passage of Mental Health Parity Bill Gives Hope and Help to Millions
of American Families

WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi released
the following statement this evening in strong support of the Paul Wellstone
and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which just
passed the House by a vote of 376 to 47:

"Today, the vote by the House this evening has given hope and help to the
millions of American families dealing with mental illness and addiction. This
significant accomplishment will help ensure that those suffering can receive
the often lifesaving treatment they need.

"This long-overdue legislation has brought mental illness and addiction out of
the shadows and to the forefront of our work here in Congress. By requiring
that illness in the brain be treated just like illness anywhere else in the
body for insurance purposes, we are helping to end discrimination against
those who seek treatment for mental illness and saving lives.

"Untreated mental illness results in 1.3 billion lost days of work or school
in our country every year. Yet bipartisan and independent research shows there
is no significant cost to insuring mental illness like any other medical
disease. With this legislation, we are making an investment in the strength
and productivity of our nation. This will also benefit some of our returning
veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan who later become employed in the private
sector. For those brave men and women who served in the National Guard and the
Reserves, but don't receive VA care for their entire lifetime, this will help
ensure they receive treatment if they ever struggle with mental illness.

"I salute my colleagues for helping to ensure that individuals with mental
health illnesses and addictions are given the attention, treatment, and
resources they need to live a healthy life. I urge the Senate and the
President to enact this essential legislation into law without delay."

SOURCE Office of the Speaker of the House

Brendan Daly or Nadeam Elshami, +1-202-226-7616, both of the Office of the
Speaker of the House