The "Workers' Disability Benefits Parity Act of 2025" seeks to ensure equal treatment for behavioral health and physical health conditions within disability benefit plans. It addresses findings from the ERISA Advisory Council that discriminatory benefit limitations, particularly duration limits, impede access to disability benefits for workers with mental health conditions or substance use disorders. The bill mandates that disability benefit plans, including those under ERISA, cannot impose more restrictive limitations, exclusions, or restrictions on benefits for disabilities stemming from a mental health condition or substance use disorder than those applied to disabilities from a physical health condition. Furthermore, any physical health condition caused by a mental health condition or substance use disorder must be considered part of that disability. These parity requirements also extend to governmental employee benefit plans and issuers of disability benefits. The Secretary of Labor is authorized to assess civil monetary penalties against entities that violate these provisions, with States having primary enforcement authority over issuers. Individuals aggrieved by non-compliance can bring an action in State or Federal court for equitable relief. The Act requires the Secretary of Labor to conduct a study on the costs of providing behavioral health disability benefits and to provide outreach to plan sponsors on the impact of duration limits. The provisions generally take effect 18 months after enactment, with a special rule for collective bargaining agreements.
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Timeline
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.
Health
Workers’ Disability Benefits Parity Act of 2025
USA119th CongressHR-3758| House
| Updated: 6/5/2025
The "Workers' Disability Benefits Parity Act of 2025" seeks to ensure equal treatment for behavioral health and physical health conditions within disability benefit plans. It addresses findings from the ERISA Advisory Council that discriminatory benefit limitations, particularly duration limits, impede access to disability benefits for workers with mental health conditions or substance use disorders. The bill mandates that disability benefit plans, including those under ERISA, cannot impose more restrictive limitations, exclusions, or restrictions on benefits for disabilities stemming from a mental health condition or substance use disorder than those applied to disabilities from a physical health condition. Furthermore, any physical health condition caused by a mental health condition or substance use disorder must be considered part of that disability. These parity requirements also extend to governmental employee benefit plans and issuers of disability benefits. The Secretary of Labor is authorized to assess civil monetary penalties against entities that violate these provisions, with States having primary enforcement authority over issuers. Individuals aggrieved by non-compliance can bring an action in State or Federal court for equitable relief. The Act requires the Secretary of Labor to conduct a study on the costs of providing behavioral health disability benefits and to provide outreach to plan sponsors on the impact of duration limits. The provisions generally take effect 18 months after enactment, with a special rule for collective bargaining agreements.