Parity for treating mental health and physical health: a poll

Author(s):

Key Takeaways

Bipartisan support exists for enhancing mental health care access, with skepticism towards insurance companies' coverage of these services.
The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 has broad public support, emphasizing the need for equitable mental health treatment.
A new federal rule aims to improve access to mental health and substance use disorder treatments for privately insured individuals.
Survey data, collected in September, highlights U.S. adults' views on mental health service accessibility, with some percentages excluding "don't know" responses.

West Health-Gallup measures public support for mental health treatment, skepticism about insurance coverage.

Mental health care is an issue with support from Democrats, Republicans and independent voters, according to a new poll.

Voters agree on another thing: skepticism about insurance companies and their willingness to cover mental health services.

The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 has broad public support. In September, federal regulators published a new rule intended to make it easier for Americans with private health insurance to access treatments for mental health and substance use disorders, according to the latest West Health-Gallup Healthcare Survey, “Bipartisan Support for Improving Mental Healthcare Access,” by Sarah Fioroni.

This slideshow presents the findings about U.S. adults’ feelings about access to mental health services. The poll was fielded Sept. 9 to 16 and results published Oct. 24.

Some slide percentages do not add up to 100% because the percentages for “don’t know” are not included.