Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 Notices

The Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA) was enacted on October 3, 2008 as sections 511 and 512 of the Tax Extenders and Alternative Minimum Tax Relief Act of 2008 (Division C of Public Law 110-343). MHPAEA amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), the Public Health Service Act (PHS Act), and the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (Code). In 1996, Congress enacted the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996, which required parity in aggregate lifetime and annual dollar limits for mental health benefits and medical and surgical benefits. Those mental health parity provisions were codified in section 712 of ERISA, section 2705 of the PHS Act, and section 9812 of the Code. The changes made by MHPAEA are codified in these same sections and consist of new requirements as well as amendments to several of the existing mental health parity provisions applicable to group health plans and health insurance coverage offered in connection with a group health plan. MHPAEA and the interim final regulations do not apply to small employers who have between two and 50 employees. The changes made by MHPAEA are generally effective for plan years beginning after October 3, 2009. MHPAEA and the final regulations (29 CFR 2590.712(d)) require plan administrators to disclose the criteria for medical necessity determinations with respect to mental health and substance use disorder benefits. These third-party disclosures are information collection requests for purposes of the Paperwork Reduction Act. In response to provisions of the Cures Act requires the Departments of Labor (DOL), Health and Human Services, and the Treasury (collectively, the Departments), are providing a model form that participants, enrollees, or their authorized representatives could use to request information from their health plan or issuer regarding NQTLs that may affect their MH/SUD benefits, or to obtain documentation after an adverse benefit determination involving MH/SUD benefits to support an appeal.

The latest form for Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 Notices expires 2022-09-30 and can be found here.

Notice of Medical Necessity Criteria under the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008

Federal Enterprise Architecture: Health - Health Care Services