Bill > H1786

This bill aims to improve access to and integration of behavioral health services by requiring health insurers and other payers to cover behavioral health screenings for children up to age 21 and postpartum parents, mandating that medically necessary behavioral health services be reimbursed regardless of location, and establishing higher reimbursement rates for providers when patients are "boarded" (waiting in a hospital emergency department for more than 24 hours) due to a lack of behavioral health facility capacity. It also requires insurers to actively search for inpatient mental health or substance abuse placements for patients stuck in emergency departments for extended periods, and if a needed service is unavailable in-network, insurers must cover it out-of-network. Furthermore, the bill establishes an Interagency Council on Behavioral Health Integration to identify and address regulatory and payment barriers to comprehensive behavioral health integration, and requires the Health Policy Commission to report on the impact of behavioral health managers on finances, quality, and access to care.