The Washington State Coalition of Mental Health Professionals and Consumers was formed in 1994 in response to mental health practitioners’ concerns about the impact of managed care on mental health practice.  The longtime Coalition lobbyist, Laura Groshong, has consulted with the Alliance and several other analytic groups. We are a multidisciplinary advocacy organization, including clinical and consumer members.  Our sole mission is to preserve and protect access to quality and ethical mental health treatment.  Our sole funding is from member dues.

2008 and Beyond

The Coalition will continue to support candidates who support ethical mental health goals, and legislation that makes ethical mental health treatment more accessible to all our citizens.

2007

Expanded parity success!  HB 1460 was signed into law in March, giving mental health parity to all non-ERISA plans (the small business and individual market) for the first time.  A monumental legislative year for mental health, SB 1088, the Children's Mental Health bill, provided $12 million in new funding for children in Medicaid programs and foster care. 

2006

The Coalition met with Regence executives to discuss their intent to cover only "evidence-based practice."  We helped Regence see the problems inherent in requiring all treatment meet this limited standard.  MH-PAC continued to win with 98% of endorsed candidates successful.

2005

Success! The first part of mental health parity, HB 1828, a mandated benefit for companies with more than 50 employees, passed the legislature.  Rep. Eileen Cody created the Joint Executive Legislative Task Force to review our state’s public mental health systems, and the Coalition was one of only 5 groups asked to submit recommendations. 

2003-2004

The Coalition Board expanded talks with Rotary Clubs.  In defensive mode, we worked with other groups to prevent the Department of Health from seizing clinical records without due process.  We continued to work with the WCIP to pass mental health parity. HB 1828, our mental health parity bill, passed the House for the first time.

2002

Coalition Board member Jane Palmer created a Provider Satisfaction Survey, identifying which insurers were the easiest for clinicians to work with.  Laura Groshong and Sue Wiedenfeld were appointed to the Regence Behavioral Health Advisory Panel with 8 other clinicians.  The  MH-PAC took in $4000 and endorsed 35 candidates, 90% of whom won their races.

2000-2001

A big step for the Coalition—joining forces with seven other mental health groups to form MH-PAC, a mental health political action committee.  We held a Patients’ Rights Conference in association with the Washington State Labor Council and Commissioner Senn.

1999

The work with Commissioner Senn became the Insurance Commissioner’s Mental Health Task Force.  The Coalition played a major role in passing SB 5587, the Patient Bill of Rights, protecting insurance enrollees’ access to benefits.   The Coalition became actively involved with the Washington Coalition for Insurance Parity, with Laura Groshong as a WCIP Board member. 

1997-1998

The Coalition helped develop and pass SB 6129, allowing consumers to see a clinician privately after their mental health benefits had been exhausted. The Coalition led in promoting changes to invasive Regence Blue Shield auditing policies and helped develop and pass SB 5313 which expanded the work done on Regence’s auditing practices to all insurers.