March 19, 1999

I am writing to thank you for the attention you gave in the January 1 issue to mental health parity in Pennsylvania ("Pa. District Branch Study Shows Parity Affordable at State Level"). Nonetheless, we should point out that our study was not, as the article states, "the first known state-level parity study," nor did it deal with cost. Coopers & Lybrand has performed several such studies, including one in Pennsylvania commissioned by the American Psychological Association.

Our study builds on that one but measures a different phenomenon. The PricewaterhouseCoopers study we commissioned measured the likely effect of mental health parity on Pennsylvania's uninsured rate. This refers to the number of people who will be priced out of the market by parity and will thus have no insurance at all. We believe it to be the first state-specific study on that issue. As your article accurately points out, the effect of parity on the uninsured rate, at least in Pennsylvania, is quite low, invalidating yet one more argument against nondiscriminatory coverage.

Gwen Lehman
Executive Director
Pennsylvania Psychiatric Society