The Mental Health Matters Act passed the House in late September by a vote of 220 to 205.

The bill, which was initially proposed in the House in May, would amend the Employee Retirement Income Security Act to make mandatory arbitration clauses unenforceable. This means that benefits plans would be banned from requiring predispute arbitration as a condition of joining the plan. The bill would also eliminate discretionary authority for plan administrators in providing benefits.

Title VII of the bill renders forced arbitration clauses, class action waivers, discretionary clauses, and representation waivers unenforceable for the purposes of benefits governed by ERISA. Beneficiaries may still consent to arbitration after a dispute arises however, as long as the following conditions apply: the participant was not coerced into agreeing to arbitration, the participant must be informed in writing of their right to refuse to agree without retaliation, and they must have a 45-day waiting period to agree to arbitration.

Plans would have one year to comply with the regulations.

Other sections of the bill would increase funding for mental and behavioral health care in schools.

Lastly, the bill would empower the Department of Labor to bring more civil actions to enforce the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act which requires insurers to provide the same mental and behavioral health benefits that they provide for medical and surgical claims. Specifically, the bill would...

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