Evaluating State Mental Health and Addiction Parity Statutes: A Technical Report
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We cannot rely on legislative solutions alone, and other regulatory and enforcement actions
must be taken to advance the goals of parity. In fact, among the many states assessed with a
low score on the SCI, policymakers and advocates have leveraged regulatory and enforcement
tools to help advance parity. Conversely, some states for which the statute was assessed as
having a higher score are experiencing a high rate of parity violations, lack of enforcement by
regulators, and poor access to care. This reflects the reality of how laws are enforced.
Particularly with the concurrent alcohol, opioid, and suicide epidemics ravaging states
across the country, states must make parity enforcement a priority in order to increase
access to critically needed treatment. Robust state parity enforcement will save not
only lives but also benefit state budgets by encouraging commercial insurers to pay for
treatment to which beneficiaries are entitled, reducing costly late interventions and cost
shifts to payers such as Medicaid. The authors hope that the transparency of comparing state
parity statutes will inform readers unfamiliar with the variations in state parity law and serve
as a catalyst for action. A template for excellence in state mental health parity law has been
established in this report, enabling states to significantly improve access to the mental health
and substance use disorder treatments needed to improve the lives of millions of Americans
who cannot access the mental health and substance use disorder treatment they need.
