Editor's note: This study was conducted in partnership with West Health, a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization focused on health care and aging.
WASHINGTON, DC — In September, the federal government announced rules aimed at making it easier for Americans with private health insurance to receive treatment for mental health and substance use disorders. The rule clarifies and strengthens the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA), which enjoys broad support among Americans, according to a recent West Health Gallup poll. It is something.
Majorities of U.S. adults in both parties and independents say they support federal legislation that would require insurers to provide treatment coverage for mental health and substance use disorders on par with medical coverage for physical illnesses. . Although the MHPAEA updates are in line with public opinion, polls show that many Americans are skeptical that insurance companies will comply.
The West Health/Gallup Healthcare Survey of 3,660 U.S. adults was conducted via the web from Sept. 9-16 using the Gallup Panel.
Support for the Mental Health Parity Act crosses party lines
Nearly four in five Americans strongly support (48%) or somewhat support the federal Equality Act, which would require insurance companies to cover mental health, substance use disorder, and personal care equally (48%). 31%). This includes 95% of Democrats, 79% of Independents, and 67% of Republicans.
Women are more likely than men to say they support this law (83% vs. 74%). Women and men who identify as Democrats were almost unanimous in their support for the law, with 95% of women and 94% of men saying they strongly or somewhat supported the law. . However, there is a gender gap between both independents (87% women vs. 73% men) and Republicans (76% women vs. 58% men).
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Half of Americans don't trust insurance companies to adhere to equal coverage
Recent tightening of the rules enforcing the MHPAEA came in response to insurers' failure to fully comply with the law. Specifically, the U.S. Department of Labor found that many private health insurance companies limit coverage for mental health and substance use disorder treatments more than general medicine or surgery.
Half of Americans say they have little or no trust that their insurance companies will comply with federal laws, compared to 43% who say they trust their insurance companies to comply with federal laws. , 7% said they were not sure. Of those who said they did not trust insurance companies, 48% were Republicans, 55% were independents, and 47% were Democrats.
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Majority widely dissatisfied with access to mental health care, doubtful it will improve
Even with equal insurance coverage for mental and physical care, there is no guarantee that it will improve access to affordable mental health care. The survey found that even with MHPAEA in place, most Americans believe the government should do more to ensure access and are generally pessimistic that the situation will improve in the near future. It is.
More than 7 in 10 Americans believe the government is not doing enough to ensure people have access to affordable mental health care. Majorities of Democrats (87%) and independents (73%) say the government is not doing enough, but a smaller number of Republicans (57%) agree.
Overall, women are more likely to express this dissatisfaction than men. Women and men who identify as Democratic Party supporters are similar in their attitudes, with 86% of Democratic women and 89% of Democratic men saying the government is not doing enough. Conversely, Republican and independent women (65% and 82%, respectively) are more likely than Republicans and independent men (48% and 67%, respectively) to believe that the government does enough to ensure access to mental health care. They are likely to say that no measures have been taken.
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The future outlook for mental health care access is bleak. Six in 10 Americans say it is “very unlikely” or “not at all likely” that access to affordable mental health care will improve in the United States over the next five years. Overall, only 8% said they were “very likely” to improve.
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Some subgroups of Americans, such as women, black adults, Hispanic adults, and Democrats, are slightly more optimistic than others on this issue. Looking at gender differences within political parties, there are some differences in attitudes between independent women and men, with 40% of women and 32% of men saying access would likely improve. There are few gender differences between Democrats and Republicans.
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what it means
Access to affordable treatments that address mental or emotional health has become an important part of the public debate about health care policy in the United States today. Previous West Health Gallup polls have shown that Americans feel the quality of mental health care in this country is inferior to care for physical health problems. There is wide agreement that governments should do more to improve access to affordable mental health care and ensure equality laws are complied with.
This sentiment is consistent across party lines, as majorities of Democrats, Republicans, and independents generally support laws like MHPAEA. While the public continues to express a desire for more action, new rules aimed at reducing barriers to accessing mental health and substance use disorder care represent progress toward meeting public demand.
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