Committee advances bill to require commercial insurers to cover behavioral-health crisis services

The House Insurance Committee voted April 15 to report House Bill 909 as amended, a measure that would require commercial payers to cover behavioral-health crisis services and set standards for provider eligibility and documentation.

Representative Veil, the bill’s sponsor, told the committee the measure aims to expand alternatives to emergency departments and 911 responses by making crisis-response centers and mobile crisis response services reimbursable by commercial insurers as well as Medicaid. He cited state and LSU-OBH modeling that estimates roughly 1,770,000 Louisianans were on private insurance in 2024 and that OBH projects about 18,000 commercially insured individuals could need crisis services each year.

“Expanding coverage to commercial plans will make it more enticing for providers to enter and sustain crisis response centers across the state,” the sponsor said.

Dr. Holly Howitt, interim assistant secretary for the Office of Behavioral Health, told members that broadening payment sources beyond Medicaid is essential to entice providers and improve access statewide. She described the Louisiana Crisis Response System (LACRS), including 988 call-center activity and walk-in behavioral-health crisis centers, and said the network remains in a growth phase since 2022.

Committee staff introduced amendment set #3395, which permits a health insurance issuer to require documentation at the time of service showing the presence of a behavioral-health crisis, the medical necessity of the intervention and a disposition or follow-up plan to determine coverage. The committee adopted that amendment without objection.

Several regional providers and system stakeholders were present in support, including representatives from Lafayette consolidated government, Oceans Healthcare, Ochsner Health and Acadian Ambulance; Frank Opelka of the Department of Insurance was present to provide information if asked. Vice Chair Ilk moved to report the bill as amended; the motion carried with no recorded objections.

The committee’s action sends HB 909 to the next stage with the adopted documentation requirement; if enacted, insurers could lawfully request crisis documentation to determine coverage, and the bill would establish payment and provider definitions for commercial plans as well as Medicaid.