Mental Health Parity Enforcement and Funding Act
- Bill Number
- H.R. 9551
- Origin Chamber
- House
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 2
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2026-06-30: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- Last Updated
- 2026-07-06T13:38:29Z
AI-Generated Summary
Mental Health Parity Enforcement and Funding Act (H.R. 9551)
Purpose
This legislation aims to strengthen enforcement of mental health and substance use disorder parity rules by allowing civil monetary penalties for violations and providing dedicated funding to support oversight.
Key Provisions
- Short title: The bill is named the "Mental Health Parity Enforcement and Funding Act."
- Civil penalties for parity violations: It amends the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) to impose penalties on plan sponsors, service providers, or plan administrators who fail to meet mental health parity requirements under Section 712.
- Enforcement expansion: The bill removes certain restrictions on the Department of Labor's ability to enforce these penalties and allows the Secretary to pursue actions related to parity violations.
- Funding allocation: It appropriates $30,000,000 annually to the Employee Benefits Security Administration for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2031 to support enforcement of the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and this new law.
- Effective date: The penalty changes apply to group health plans for plan years beginning one year after the bill's enactment.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Expanded liability: Previously limited to plan sponsors, penalties now also apply to service providers and plan administrators.
- New penalty category: Adds violations of mental health parity rules to the list of actions subject to civil monetary penalties under ERISA Section 502(c)(10).
- Enforcement authority: Updates ERISA Section 502 to permit the Secretary of Labor to enforce the new penalties, with an exception for direct enforcement of Section 712.
- Dedicated appropriations: Introduces specific multi-year funding not previously tied to the 2008 parity law.
Potential Impacts
- On government agencies: Provides increased resources to the Employee Benefits Security Administration for monitoring and enforcing mental health parity rules in employee benefit plans.
- On citizens: May lead to stronger compliance by health plans, potentially improving access to mental health and substance use disorder benefits for participants in group health plans.
- On international relations: No direct effects identified.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Group health plan sponsors, service providers, and administrators.
- Health insurance issuers offering coverage connected to these plans.
- The Department of Labor's Employee Benefits Security Administration.
- Employees and beneficiaries covered by group health plans subject to ERISA.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- Legal implications: Enhances enforcement mechanisms under ERISA by treating parity violations similarly to other prohibited practices, such as misuse of genetic information, allowing for civil monetary penalties.
- No explicit constitutional or political implications are stated in the legislation.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Recent Actions
- 2026-06-30: Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
- 2026-06-30: Introduced in House
- 2026-06-30: Introduced in House
Bill Versions
- Mental Health Parity Enforcement and Funding Act — issued 2026-06-30 — PDF (4 pages)