'Our bill addresses these issues by giving Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP patients greater access to mental health services closer to home,' said Barrasso.
Introduce and support legislation to increase access and coverage to behavioral, psychological, and mental health services for Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP patients in rural areas.
Occurrences
Senators Coons and Barrasso introduced the Mental Health Access and Provider Support Act to increase Medicare reimbursement rates for clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, and mental health counselors, aiming to support mental health providers and strengthen access to mental health care services.
Barrasso, Bennet Introduce Bill to Improve Access to Mental Health Services in Rural Areas ... The Accelerating the Development of Advanced Psychology Trainees (ADAPT) Act , will establish Medicare, Medicaid, and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage for advanced psychology trainees, allowing nearly 4,000 trainees to bill for services provided under the supervision of a licensed psychologist. This legislation will help rural areas across the country expand access to mental health services, improve recruitment of mental and behavioral health providers, and will help reduce burnout among our current mental health care workforce. ... Our bill addresses these issues by giving Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP patients greater access to mental health services closer to home.
Barrasso and Coons introduced the Mental Health Access and Provider Support Act to increase Medicare reimbursement for clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, and mental health counselors.
Barrasso, Coons Introduce Bipartisan Expanding Seniors Access to Mental Health Services Act
Evidence
On March 27, 2026, Senators Chris Coons and John Barrasso introduced the Mental Health Access and Provider Support Act, aiming to increase Medicare reimbursement rates for clinical social workers, marriage and family therapists, and mental health counselors. This bipartisan legislation seeks to expand access to mental health services and address workforce shortages, particularly in rural areas.
On July 25, 2025, Senators John Barrasso and Michael Bennet introduced the Accelerating the Development of Advanced Psychology Trainees (ADAPT) Act. This bipartisan legislation aims to establish Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP coverage for advanced psychology trainees, allowing them to bill for services provided under the supervision of a licensed psychologist. The bill seeks to expand access to mental health services in rural areas and improve recruitment of mental health providers.
On May 15, 2025, Senators John Barrasso and Chris Coons introduced the Expanding Seniors Access to Mental Health Services Act. This bipartisan bill aims to improve Medicare beneficiaries' access to licensed clinical social workers by allowing these professionals to participate in the Medicare program, thereby expanding the number of mental health providers available to seniors.
On December 4, 2025, Senators John Barrasso and Sheldon Whitehouse introduced the ACO Assignment Improvement Act. This bipartisan legislation aims to expand participation in Medicare's coordinated-care programs by ensuring Medicare recognizes care provided by nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and clinical nurse specialists when determining participation in an Accountable Care Organization (ACO). This change seeks to help Medicare patients receive more coordinated and high-quality care.
On January 12, 2026, Senator John Barrasso, along with Senators Peter Welch, Shelley Moore Capito, and Jacky Rosen, introduced the Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act. This bipartisan legislation aims to expand Medicare coverage of genetic counseling services by allowing genetic counselors to be reimbursed directly by Medicare. The bill seeks to improve access to these services, particularly in rural communities.
Congress.gov shows S.2356 was introduced by Senator Barrasso on 2025-07-17 and referred to Senate Finance, with the bill tracker still showing introduced status. The page also lists a later cosponsor addition on 2026-02-12, indicating continued support, but no committee markup, chamber passage, or enactment.
The official bill text says the ADAPT Act would expand psychological, mental, and behavioral health services to Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP beneficiaries by allowing reimbursement for services provided by supervised psychology trainees.
Assessments
The promise was to introduce and support legislation expanding behavioral, psychological, and mental health access for Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP patients in rural areas. Barrasso materially fulfilled that by introducing the ADAPT Act in 2025, which directly targeted Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP coverage for supervised psychology trainees to expand rural mental health access. Additional 2025-2026 bipartisan bills he introduced or co-introduced also supported expanded Medicare mental health provider access. Because the promise was framed around legislative introduction and support rather than final enactment, the documented introduction and backing of these bills is sufficient for full delivery in the same term.
Barrasso materially advanced the claimed policy by repeatedly introducing bipartisan bills in the 119th Congress that targeted Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP access for mental, behavioral, and psychological health services in rural areas, including the ADAPT Act and related provider-access bills. However, the evidence shows introduction and referral only, with no committee markup, chamber passage, or enactment, so the promise was not fully delivered. Because the substantive legislative effort occurred during his current Senate term, the timing is same_term. The result merits partial credit rather than full delivery.
Senator Barrasso introduced and supported multiple bipartisan bills in the same term aimed at increasing access to behavioral, psychological, and mental health services for Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP patients in rural areas. However, the evidence only documents the introduction and support of relevant legislation, not enactment into law or full implementation. No evidence indicates these bills became law or directly resulted in expanded coverage or access, so the outcome is partial. The legislative effort is substantial and targeted toward the claim.