OH HB598

Amends Ohio's mental health insurance parity law to include pervasive developmental disorders (autism, Asperger's disorder, PDD-NOS, Rett's syndrome, and childhood disintegrative disorder) as biologically based mental illnesses requiring equal insurance coverage.

Requires coverage for applied behavior analysis (ABA) when treating pervasive developmental disorders if provided or supervised by a certified behavior analyst, licensed physician, psychologist, or qualified mental health professional, including costs for supervisory personnel.

Allows insurers and health plans to cap annual ABA benefits at $50,000 and permits managed care provisions such as pre-authorization and utilization review for mental health services.

Exempts individual and small group health plans from ABA coverage requirements on and after January 1, 2014, if benefits exceed federal essential health benefits standards under the Affordable Care Act.

Allows insurers to opt out of mental health parity requirements if they submit actuarial documentation showing mental health claims independently caused costs to increase more than 1% annually and obtain superintendent of insurance approval.