Dave Camp: “We all support the goal of improving patients' access to treatment for mental illnesses. However, this bill represents a…”

“We all support the goal of improving patients' access to treatment for mental illnesses. However, this bill represents a flawed approach that will ultimately do more harm for these patients by driving up costs and resulting in few employers actually offering any health care coverage to their employees. This bill will place an unprecedented number of mandates on insurers and employers, which will increase the costs of health insurance for working Americans. Whether large or small, these costs get passed along to the purchasers of health insurance, employers and employees alike. Dramatic increases in health care costs have already forced many employers to drop or limit health care coverage. This in turn makes it more difficult for their employees to obtain any health insurance, let alone mental health and substance abuse benefits. The mandates in this bill will only make the situation worse, making health insurance unaffordable for increasing numbers of Americans. This is why employer groups like the Chamber of Commerce, the National Restaurant Association and the National Retail Federation are all strongly opposed to the bill before us today.”