Under the federal mental health parity rules, a group health plan that offers medical and surgical benefits must provide mental health and substance use disorder benefits:
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Answer & full 3-part explanation (select an option above, or peek)
Why A is correct
Federal mental health parity rules require group health plans that cover medical and surgical benefits to offer mental health and substance use disorder benefits with financial requirements, deductibles, copayments, coinsurance, and out-of-pocket limits, and treatment limitations that are no more restrictive than those applied to comparable medical and surgical benefits. The rule is about equal treatment, not free care: the plan need not cover mental health at 100 percent or waive all cost sharing. It simply may not subject mental health care to stricter conditions than physical care.
Why the other options are wrong
- B) Parity means equality of cost sharing with medical and surgical care, not free mental health care with no limits at all.
- C) Mental health benefits may not be relegated to an optional rider while medical and surgical benefits are core, if the plan covers both.
- D) Screening employees through a mental health questionnaire would itself discriminate and is not part of the parity requirement.
Memory hook
Parity = mental health costs and limits must match the physical health rules. Same treatment, same terms.