AMA Launches Mental Health Parity Index to Expose Insurance Disparities

The American Medical Association (AMA), in partnership with The Kennedy Forum and Third Horizon, has launched the Mental Health Parity Index, a free, interactive mapping tool designed to assess commercial insurance plan performance regarding mental health parity laws. This tool uses Transparency in Coverage data to compare access, coverage, and payment for mental health and substance-use services against physical health services.

Initial data from Illinois reveals significant disparities: a 55% difference in provider network participation favoring physical health providers, a 27% gap in payments, and inpatient mental health admissions costing nearly twice as much per day as physical health admissions. These findings highlight ongoing non-compliance with state and federal mental health parity laws, which require insurers to provide equivalent coverage for mental health and addiction treatment as for other medical services. The AMA and partners emphasize the real-world consequences of these insurance gaps, including increased emergency visits, hospitalizations, and higher healthcare costs due to delayed or inaccessible care.

The index offers detailed maps showing provider network composition by county, payment differences, and other metrics to inform stakeholders including physicians, patients, and policymakers. This tool aims to foster transparency and accountability among commercial insurers and support regulatory efforts to improve parity enforcement nationally.

The AMA continues to advocate for physician-led integration of behavioral health in primary care settings through initiatives like the Behavioral Health Integration Collaborative. The Mental Health Parity Index represents a strategic advancement in addressing inequities in mental health insurance coverage and seeks to drive systemic improvements in healthcare access and outcomes.