HELP PASS THE WELLSTONE BILL FOR MENTAL HEALTH PARITY What is the Wellstone Bill? The bill we now refer to as the Wellstone bill is one that Paul Wellstone championed for years in the U.S. Senate. The Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act is legislation that would end the practice of insurance companies discriminating against people suffering from mental illness. Sponsored by Representative Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Wellstone's friend Representative Jim Ramstad (R-MN), the bill would compel insurance companies to treat mental illness the same as physical illness, given the overwhelming scientific evidence that mental illness is a disease every bit as real and serious as physical illness. This practice is often referred to as "mental health parity." Wellstone worked on mental health illnesses extensively in the Senate, and collaborated for a decade with his colleague Senator Pete Domenici (R-MN) on parity legislation. Despite differing political views, t...