Medicare to cover contraception at zero cost starting 2027

What it does

This bill requires Medicare to cover all contraceptive items, services, and drugs at no cost to beneficiaries starting January 1, 2027. It eliminates deductibles and cost-sharing for contraception under Medicare Parts B, C, and D, and directs HHS and GAO to study gaps in contraceptive coverage across Medicare, Medicaid, commercial insurance, and TRICARE.

Why we flagged it

The bill's core mechanism is a straightforward mandate to add contraceptive items and services to Medicare's covered benefits with zero cost-sharing, effective 2027. It is a public-health coverage expansion, not a tax provision, deregulation, or private carve-out.

What the text implies

• The definition of 'contraceptive items and services' includes items 'regardless of whether such items and services are actually furnished for purposes of contraception' — this broad language may cover non-contraceptive uses of hormonal or other drugs, expanding the scope beyond stated intent.
• Dual-eligible individuals (Medicare + Medicaid) must receive coverage 'at least as comprehensive' as their state Medicaid plan, creating a floor that may force states to expand Medicaid contraceptive coverage to match Medicare's zero-cost standard.
• The bill mandates HHS guidance on 'patient-centered counseling' but does not specify funding or enforcement mechanisms, potentially creating unfunded counseling obligations for providers.
• GAO studies on commercial and public plan coverage gaps may generate political pressure for similar mandates across private insurance and other public programs, extending the cost-shifting beyond Medicare.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

Medicare beneficiaries gain access to contraception without out-of-pocket costs, removing a financial barrier to reproductive health care. The bill expands coverage to a population (seniors, disabled individuals) often on fixed incomes, with no identified offsetting public cost or private capture mechanism.

Who stands to gain

• pharmaceutical manufacturers (contraceptive drugs)
• medical device makers (IUDs, implants)
• healthcare providers (increased volume of contraceptive services)

Named in the bill

Medicare (Parts B, C, D), Social Security Act (Sections 1861, 1833, 1852, 1860D-2, 1860D-4, 1860D-14), HHS (Secretary), GAO (Comptroller General), FDA, Public Health Service Act (Section 2713), Medicaid, TRICARE, BMY (Bristol Myers Squibb), GH (Guardant Health), PFE (Pfizer), DVA (DaVita) — and 1 more

Where it stands

3 cosponsors: 2 Republicans, 1 Democrats.

• Dec 18, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• Dec 18, 2025 — Referred to Senate Committee on Finance · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance”

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 3 disclosure filings across 2 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $55,749 in lobbying spend. A filing names 13 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.

Maggie Hassan, the sponsor, reported $608,285 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• Americans for the Arts — $34,046 on 2 filings
• Power to Decide — $21,703 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.