Tip of the Day: Use your EAP to lessen MHP costs

Hey pros, you have less than two months to get prepped to comply with mental health parity legislation (going into effect Oct. 3). Although stats show that the costs to do so will be less than you may have thought, there may already be a tool in your belt to mitigate costs even further.

According to CuraLinc (www.curalinc.com), a Chicago-based provider of behavioral health and wellness programs, your employee assistance program may have some plan design options that can mitigate the financial impact of the MHP law.

“Even after the Mental Health Parity Act goes into effect, companies that use their EAP to act as a ‘first stop’ for employees accessing MH/SA services may actually see their health care costs go down,” says John Kamilis, LCPC, CuraLinc’s clinical director.

Decreasing health care costs? I believe I hear music to your ears.