A Fair Shake for Mental Health: The Workers' Disability Benefits Parity Act
If you become disabled from a broken back or cancer, most long-term disability insurance policies will pay you benefits for as long as you remain unable to work—sometimes until retirement age. But if you become disabled from depression, PTSD, or a substance use disorder, many of these same policies will only pay benefits for 24 months, even if you're just as unable to work as someone with a physical injury. This glaring double standard caught the attention of Congress, which introduced the Workers' Disability Benefits Parity Act of 2025 (H.R. 3758) in June 2025 to finally address this discriminatory practice. The bill aims to ensure that workers disabled by mental health conditions receive the same treatment as those with physical disabilities.
What the Bill Would Do
The proposed law would prohibit disability insurance plans from imposing restrictions on mental health or substance use disorder claims that are more severe than those applied to physical conditions H.R. 3758: A Landmark Step Toward Mental Health Parity in Disability Benefits. In plain English, this means insurance companies could no longer cut off benefits after two years simply because your disability stems from a mental health condition rather than a physical one. The bill also establishes real enforcement mechanisms, empowering the Department of Labor to impose civil monetary penalties for violations, giving the law actual teeth rather than empty promises. This addresses a fundamental unfairness: disability should be measured by how much it affects your ability to work, not by what type of medical condition causes it.
Origins — ERISA Advisory Council
The legislation builds on findings from a 2023 report by ERISA's own Advisory Council, which concluded that discriminatory benefit limitations found in nearly all long-term disability benefit plans impede access to benefits for workers whose disability is caused by a behavioral health condition. The impact of these time limits is devastating—imagine being unable to work due to severe depression or PTSD, finally getting approved for disability benefits, only to have them cut off after two years while you're still unable to function. Meanwhile, someone with back pain that makes them equally unable to work continues receiving benefits indefinitely. The bill has garnered support from major insurers like Sun Life, and actuarial data suggests that fears about excessive costs may be overstated—especially since all major LTD carriers already offer parity options, just not as the default.
Bill Status
The Workers' Disability Benefits Parity Act is currently working its way through Congress, and if passed, it would represent a major victory for fairness and equality in disability insurance. For too long, arbitrary time limits have forced people with mental health disabilities into poverty and desperation, sending a message that their suffering is somehow less legitimate than physical illness. This bill recognizes what modern medicine has long known: mental health conditions can be just as disabling as physical ones, and people struggling with them deserve equal protection and support. As our nation continues to break down the stigma surrounding mental health, this legislation is a crucial step toward ensuring that our insurance system reflects our values of compassion and equality.
Graybill & Hazlewood, LLC represents individuals who have an LTD policy as a fringe benefit of their employer and which, therefore, is subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). If you have such a claim, please contact Sean McGivern at the firm.