By Spencer Hunt
Enquirer Columbus Bureau

COLUMBUS - Health insurance companies would have to cover mental illnesses the same way they would medical illnesses under a bill that passed the Ohio House Wednesday.

The 52-40 vote divided majority Republicans and comes one week after Gov. Bob Taft asked lawmakers not to pass any new health mandates. Taft called for a one-year moratorium on health care reforms, saying employers can't afford their extra cost in tough economic times.

Supporters of the bill, including sponsor Rep. Lynn Olman, R-Maumee, said the lack of insurance coverage for mental health care costs employers millions in lost work days, low productivity and employee turnover.

He also said many mental illnesses stem from chemical problems in the brain and can be treated with drugs just like a medical illness. But he said thousands of Ohioans have health plans that put 20-day to 30-day limits on hospital care and $10,000 annual caps on coverage.

"That is wrong," Olman said. "That is discrimination no matter how you shake it out."

At the center of the issue is the high cost of mental health treatment and who should pay for it.

Officials at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center say they took a $3.5 million loss last year caring for mentally ill children. That's why hospital lobbyist Melissa Saladonis urged lawmakers to pass the bill.

"Insurance companies just stop paying," Saladonis said.

"We do this because we serve every child regardless of their ability to pay."

Olman's bill would make insurance companies that sell health plans to small- and medium-sized businesses treat major mental illnesses, including schizophrenia and major depression, no differently than cancer or heart disease.

Business groups and insurance companies have opposed bills similar to Olman's for years, saying it would increase costs to the point where some employers would be forced to drop their health insurance altogether.

"This will increase health care costs and health insurance for all Ohioans," said William Fitzgibbon, director of the Ohio Small Business Council.

Supporters of the bill say there are similar laws in 35 states, including Kentucky and Indiana. They say insurance premiums in those states have gone up less than 1 percent.

Olman said a study of Vermont's law found residents there paid an average 19 cents more per month in insurance premiums.

That did little mollify some of Olman's fellow Republicans who insisted the bill would hurt small businesses. "This does not come without a price," said Rep. Charles Blasdell, R-East Liverpool.

Conservatives did change the bill to let insurance companies drop mental health coverage if a six-month actuarial study finds it raised their costs more than 1 percent. Olman said he's confident costs won't rise that high.

Whether the bill will become law is far from certain. Senate Republicans may ignore it.

Senate President Doug White, R-Manchester, has "some concerns both about the cost to state government and private business," said spokeswoman Maggie Mitchell.

"We want to honor the governor's moratorium," she added.

Taft's spokesman, Orest Holubec, said the governor has never threatened to veto the bill. He also said Taft doesn't want it on his desk.

"In this economic climate, the last thing we need to do is increase costs for employers," Holubec said.

E-mail shunt@enquirer.com