Congress mandates free primary care and mental health visits—but only 3 per year

What it does

This bill requires health insurance plans to cover 3 primary care visits and 3 behavioral health visits per year with zero cost-sharing (no copays, coinsurance, or deductibles). The visits must be treated identically to other covered visits—same reimbursement rates, no separate limits—and applies to employer plans, individual insurance, and high-deductible health plans. It takes effect 2 years after enactment.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core function is to mandate zero-cost-sharing coverage for a defined set of primary and behavioral health visits across all group and individual health plans. It is a straightforward consumer protection and public health measure, not a tax provision, subsidy, or deregulation.

What the text implies

• The 3-visit annual limit may be insufficient for individuals with chronic conditions or frequent mental health needs, potentially creating a false sense of 'free' access while leaving significant out-of-pocket exposure for additional visits.
• Reimbursement-rate parity requirement may incentivize plans to lower rates for all primary/behavioral visits to offset the cost of free access, potentially reducing provider participation or quality.
• The bill does not address telehealth parity or define 'in-person' visit requirements, which may exclude remote behavioral health services and disadvantage rural or mobility-limited populations.
• Effective date is 2 years post-enactment, creating a lag during which plans can adjust pricing and network strategies in anticipation, potentially raising premiums or narrowing provider networks before the mandate takes effect.

Who it affects

Ordinary people gain direct access to preventive primary and mental health care without out-of-pocket costs, reducing financial barriers to early intervention and routine care. The mandate applies uniformly across plan types and provider categories, ensuring broad coverage without carve-outs or discrimination.

Who stands to gain

• health insurance plans (reduced utilization of expensive downstream care)
• primary care and behavioral health providers (increased volume of covered visits)
• employers offering group health plans (potential long-term savings from preventive care)

Named in the bill

Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), Public Health Service Act (PHSA), Internal Revenue Code (IRC), Health Care Procedure Coding System (HCPCS), Bristol Myers Squibb (BMY), Guardant Health (GH), Pfizer (PFE), DaVita (DVA), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)

Where it stands

1 cosponsor: 1 Democrats.

• Jun 11, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Jun 11, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Ways and Means and House Committee on Education and Workforce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Education and…”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

2 lobbying clients named this bill on 2 disclosure filings across 1 quarter, Jun 2026 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $120,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 20 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 41% of bills with at least one filing.

Lauren Underwood, the sponsor, reported $424,700 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• American Association of Colleges of Nursing — $90,000 on 1 filing
• American Association of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry — $30,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 20, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.