NAMI members testified during a December hearing on mental health parity and met with legislators beforehand to discuss issues affecting individuals and families living with mental illness. The Mental Health Parity and Access Oversight hearing was held by the Senate Committee on Health and the Select Committee on Mental Health on Dec. 16. Members from NAMI Sacramento and NAMI Humboldt testified before the Committees, sharing their experiences with finding qualified providers, accessing inpatient hospital care, and securing appropriate services for children and adolescents.
NAMI California wants to give a big thanks to Patricia Wentzel and Dr. Daniel Rockers from NAMI Sacramento and Lea Nagy from NAMI Humboldt for sharing their experiences with access to mental health care. NAMI California also appreciates the legislators and staff who arranged the joint hearing, including committee chairs Senator Jim Beall and Senator Ed Hernandez. To watch the hearing online, click here. (Patricia Wentzel’s testimony begins at 15:00.)
If you have questions about mental health parity or problems with your health plan, NAMI California encourages you to contact the Department of Managed Health Care’s Help Center at 1-888-466-2219 or www.dmhc.ca.gov. The Department of Managed Health Care has oversight and enforcement authority over most commercial health plans, and can help resolve issues including mental health parity, timely access, and network adequacy. So, if you are not able to find a qualified provider in your insurance network, can’t get an appointment when you need one, have a necessary hospital stay denied or experience other problems, please call the DMHC Help Center. You can also reach us at advocacy@namica.org.