Look into carve-out mental health networks keeping in mind that actuarially certified statement that full parity adds 2% or more in first year of compliance (additional 1% in succeeding years) gives you an out. Depending on the amount of actuarial fees the most full parity compliance will cost is in the neighborhood of 3% more.


Our plan year is coming up and we are adopting the changes into the plan to reflect what we believe to treat the mental health and substance abuse equally as other benefits under the plan. My stomach turned with removing the current mental and substance abuse limits and wonder if there is anyway to provide this benefit with less risk to the plan?

The idea of having inpatient mental health with no limits leaves a self funded plan with a lot of exposure to future long term claims. We thought about removing both completely from the plan (assuming that you have to have mental health/substance abuse together and not one or the other?). What are you doing for your clients or your employer to protect the plan from a dependent who going through substance abuse rehab over and over (In patient treatment) and over again.