Social Policy Breakdown Model

4559 Words19 Pages
SOCIAL POLICY ANALYSIS POLICY FRAMEWORK MODEL Framework for Social Policy Analysis (Revised, January 2005), by Professor Ruth Brandwein, Ph.D. (adopted from David Gil) THE ISSUE How to regulate and ensure parity of mental health benefits for all New York State individuals and families who suffer with mental health problems and alcohol and substance abuse/dependency? WHAT IS THE POLICY? Description of the policy The bill amends the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 to rid of discriminatory provisions that block patients from accessing care with mental health and/or addiction disorders. The legislation amends two existing federal laws that establish standards for health insurance plans: The Employee Retirement Income Security…show more content…
pp. 398). Due to the realization that managed care has not been successful in controlling healthcare costs, advocates have begun to speak out for more basic changes “in the hope that they might be able to establish universal coverage in some states” (Blau, 2004. pp. 398). The hope is that the behavior of one state will influence the others. In the case of mental health parity, this hypothesis has been played out by thirty-three states which, through grass roots awareness and advocacy campaigns and lobbying, have adopted their own mental health parity laws. June 6, 2002 was Parity Hill Day in Washington DC. Approximately 2,000 supporters attended….”emphasizing the need for mental health parity now” (Clark, 2002). The purpose of the rally was to show support for the Mental Health Equitable Treatment Act of 2002 (HR 4066…The House version of bill S543) introduced in Congress by Representative Roukema (R-NJ and Patrick Kennedy (D-RI). This national bill, which was not as comprehensive as the one preceding it, was similar to the New York State Assembly bill,…show more content…
Unintended effects/consequences of the policy (if not yet in effect,, what might they be)? An obvious unintended effect of regulating mental health parity could result in an employers’ option to stop providing health insurance to their employees altogether if they believe the additional two to three percent premium cost is too high. “One destructive consequence of the competitive approach (in a market based economy) tends to be that deprived groups perceive each other as threats to their respective, narrowly defined, interests, and do not realize that the real threat to their joint interests is the principle of inequity which pervades the entire structure and the fabric of society” (Gil, 1990. pp. 189). Another unintended consequence of this mental health parity bill could be blatant discriminatory hiring and firing practices of people with known mental health

More about Social Policy Breakdown Model

Open Document