Should insurance cover treatment for eating disorders?

From today’s Chicago Tribune: “Illinois lawmakers can't do much about the physical and emotional toll [of anorexia and bulimia], but they did move to ease the financial burden on families, recently approving legislation that would require insurance companies to pay for treatment of anorexia and bulimia. If Gov. Rod Blagojevich signs the bill, Illinois will become the 17th state to mandate such coverage.”

Treatment for an ED can run as high as $2,500 a day. Eating disorders carry the highest fatality rate of any psychiatric illness.

Admittedly, I have zero idea if my family’s insurance covered my treatment when I was in college. All I know is I staunchly rejected the therapist they sent me, crossing my arms as she threatened to “fix me.” Today, I consider therapy one of the highlights of my week (behind So You Think You Can Dance but ahead of doing laundry) –a clear sign (to me, at least) that I’ve a) gotten better and b) found a guy who knows what he’s doing. I do pay a 30% copay because my guy is out-of-network. Believe me, I recognize that I’m fortunate to be in a position to do so. But this is not exactly ED treatment – it’s biofeedback for my sleep. Were I seeing a therapist for an ED, I’m pretty sure it would be covered; as for in-patient coverage, I don’t know. This news sounds like the answer is a big N-O.

Families can lose their house paying for a child with an ED to get help. It is THAT EXPENSIVE. How sad that, in addition to the stress and turmoil of an ED, financial ruin is a very real concern. I’m all for in-patient coverage…how about you?

Comments

Definitely all for it!!

I absolutely think inpatient treatment should be covered. Anorexia and bulimia can be fatal. I don't understand why treatment should be evaluated any differently than treatment for another potentially fatal condition...

When our daughter developed an eating disorder in college-away from home-and over 18 which meant that she was the one who legally made the decision to pursue and continue treatment. Our insurance plan at that time-10 years ago-did not cover anything related to ed so all expenses were out of pocket. Our belief was -whatever it takes to get our daughter healthy- and that is how we approached the situation. I think that it is long overdue that insurance companies cover the families that they insure-either in patient or out patient. "Whatever it takes to get the individual healthy" should be their motto. To lose a child because of one's financial situation would be beyond comprehension.

Absolutely, health insurance should coner this!

Right now, I am in the middle of a tug-of-war it seems with my parents' insurance over residential treatment. It is my absolute last chance at having a normal life bc I will be off their insurance in 7 months, so if they say no, there are no other options.

Aside from wanting this for myself, I hate imagining other, especially younger girls going through this, with no way out. Sometimes treatment is the only option for us to be able to lead productive lives.

My gut reaction is yes.

But a small part of me wonders whether if the safety net becomes so easily accesible and, well, safe... treatment would become more common...would it normalise the disease at all? I'm thinking of those who are teetering on the edge of having a problem, who might see this as kind of a rite of passage if it were so widely available. They might fall into it a little easier.

But mostly I do think it should be covered. I was lucky enough that my work paid for my therapy, but if they hadn't, I certainly wouldn't have been able to afford it.

TA x

I think the insurance companies' resistance to paying for coverage indicates that they aren't treating anorexia and bulimia as what they are -- diseases that require treatment.

I think a lot of people see anorexic girls and say, "Why doesn't she just EAT?" How many times do you see a picture of a very thin actress in a magazine with the comment, "Someone feed her a sandwich" ? There seem to be a lot of people who think overcoming an eating disorder is purely about the food.

On a separate note, I have never been treated for anorexia (or drug or alcohol addiction), but why are the rehab centers so freakin' expensive? $2500 a DAY? That seems pretty steep. Just curious.

my insurance covered part of my counselling but it was still $70 a pop, 4 times a week. i had to pay it myself. i was 18. I had to move back home because i couldnt cover it, which made my ED worse because thats where everything originated. my counsellor was GREAT and offered a payment plan, but still. i wanted to quit a few times simply because i couldnt afford it.

i cant even imagine how inpatient would be.

also, i know for a fact that my old insurance covered gastric bypass, which if you think about it, is the same thing as rehab for eating disorders. you cant control your food and need medical intervention.

oh, and it also covered boob jobs, so, uh, thanks America.

me, again.

TA, i think we need to distinguish between people that are "anorexic" as a fad, and those with true eating disorders. Those who are truely sick dont make the decision to be so because they know there is treatment out there. most have to be drug (dragged? whatever) kicking and screaming, and dont truely believe they are bad off enough to warrant help.

I definitely think EDs should be covered. They are actual, life threatening illnesses. I think, as Every Gym pointed out above, that there is a big misconception where people assume that anorexics have simply done this to themselves. If they just start eating the problem will go away!

Of course, we all know, and fortunately more people are cluing in, that this isn't true. EDs are psychological as well as physical problems and should be treated with the same coverage as other psychological and physical illnesses.

While I'm horrified that ED's aren't covered, I'm not totally shocked. There are still plans out there that won't cover treatment for any mental illness like depression or worse. You can be really crazy: bipolar or schizophrenic, and your health insurance will just say tough nuts to you. If they can do that, I'm not surprised they will do it to ED sufferers as well.

But it's not right. ED in whatever form is a real illness and it causes real harm. People need treatment to regain their health. It should be covered by insurance, period!

My plan has gone into debt in trying to treat my eating disorder. This only makes my anorexia worse because I feel so guilty. I had to leave inpatient early which I think lead almost directly to my multiple relapses. When we tried to get a nutritionist covered they argued that it wasn't neccacasry to treat and eating disorder! Cancer is deadly and costs a lot to treat and has a risk of relapse. Insurance covers that without a second thought. There are no therapists in our network that treats adolences with eating disorders so we had to go out of network. How can they not cover it when they don't have any in network.

Well, it seems like if they pay for alcohol treatment or other addictive diseases, this should be a no brainer.

Definitely - insurance should pay for it. I spent years as a health reporter covering this issue and frankly, I don't understand why insurance would NOT cover it, as well as other mental illnesses. It's just not right.

Yes, I would like to see insurance cover the cost of treatment, but in reality I think insurance companies are hesitant because of money.
Here's another article regarding eating disorders and insurance companies. Very sad. Very frustrating.

One reason health insurance is so expensive and unaffordable for many is because it is expected that they should pay for everything. Legislation like this sounds like a good idea, but nothing is free. Someone is going to have to pay for it, and that is going to be whoever is paying for the insurance.

I'm not saying insurance companies shouldn't cover it (and some probably do), but forcing things to be covered with legislation is something that will have negative unintended consequences, I think.

To me, this is just another sign of how badly we need insurance reform. I'm sorry, but we're already paying for it. We pay premiums for a reason. They are NOT cheap. And I find it infuriating the degree to which insurance companies are allowed to protect their already-insane profit margin by limiting and refusing the very coverage you think you're paying for...so read your policies very, very carefully.

The bottom line for me is, you buy insurance so you can afford to protect your health. If that health is threatened, that protection should be there. And insurance companies, even if they employ doctors to do their "review", should NOT be allowed to determine what care you receive through refusal to pay. That is, or should be, between you and your doctor, and no one else.

V.

Does insurance companies cover quit smoking remedies? Mental addictions should not be covered. Physical diseases such as diabetes and cancers and others should be covered IN FULL. Aids patients if disease was contracted in a medical setting only. Not by promiscuity or drug use. --We can't keep making bad decisions and have the rest of the United States take care of us. Be Real!

People with EDs can't get better on their own any more than someone with diabetes can get better on their own. It's a legitimate disease and people who suffer need help to get better. I definitely think insurance should cover ED treatment...I'm paying the premiums for them to cover people's triple bypass surgeries and schizophrenia and what have you. It's one more condition that needs to be covered. It's not like it's some sort of imaginary condition or something.