Congress mandates free primary and mental health visits—but caps them at 3 per year

What it does

This bill requires health insurance plans to cover at least 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 in the same category—same reimbursement rates, no separate limits—and applies to employer plans, individual insurance, and high-deductible health plans.

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 major insurance types. It is a straightforward consumer protection measure with no hidden mechanisms.

What the text implies

• The 3-visit annual limit may be insufficient for individuals with chronic conditions or complex behavioral health needs, potentially creating a false sense of coverage while leaving significant gaps.
• Reimbursement-rate parity requirement may incentivize plans to lower rates across all visits in these categories to minimize cost exposure, potentially reducing provider participation or quality.
• The 2-year implementation delay allows insurers time to adjust plan designs and pricing, potentially offsetting savings through higher premiums or increased cost-sharing in other services.
• Behavioral health provider definition is broad and includes social workers and counselors, but enforcement of 'full-time position' requirement may create access gaps in rural or underserved areas.

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.

Who stands to gain

• health insurance enrollees (consumers)
• primary care physicians and practices
• behavioral health providers (psychiatrists, therapists, counselors, social workers)

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

• Jun 11, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in Senate”
• Jun 11, 2026 — Referred to Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions · Congress.gov: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions”

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 $110,000 in lobbying spend. A filing names 74 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.

Angus King, the sponsor, reported $32,500 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle.

• American Association of Colleges of Nursing — $90,000 on 1 filing
• National Alliance on Mental Illness — $20,000 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.