HB2438 Summary

• Amends the Illinois Insurance Code Section 370c to expand the definition of "mental, emotional, nervous, or substance use disorder or condition" to explicitly include mental health conditions occurring during pregnancy or the postpartum period, including postpartum depression.

• Requires all group accident and health insurance policies and individual health policies that are amended, delivered, issued, or renewed on or after the effective date to provide coverage for reasonable and necessary treatment and services for mental health conditions during pregnancy and postpartum periods consistent with parity requirements.

• Allows insured individuals to select from a range of licensed healthcare providers (physicians, psychologists, clinical social workers, counselors, therapists, and speech-language pathologists) to treat mental health conditions, including perinatal conditions.

• Requires insurers to ensure medical necessity determinations for mental health treatment are made consistently with determinations for other medical conditions and to establish timely review procedures through unaffiliated providers when disputes arise.

• Updates references from the "Illinois Alcoholism and Other Drug Abuse and Dependency Act" to "Substance Use Disorder Act" throughout the statute.