Copay Fairness for Veterans Act of 2026

Key Points

• This bill would eliminate all copayments that the VA charges veterans for preventive health services, including hospital care, nursing home care, walk-in care, and related medications. Veterans would pay nothing out of pocket for these services.
• The bill broadly defines preventive health services to include immunizations recommended by the CDC, cancer and disease screenings, anxiety screening, HIV testing, counseling for domestic violence and STIs, and evidence-based items rated 'A' or 'B' by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.
• Women veterans and other covered individuals would gain no-cost access to a wide range of reproductive and preventive services including all FDA-approved contraception, breastfeeding services and supplies, well-woman visits, and obesity prevention counseling.
• Family members, survivors, and dependents covered under the VA's CHAMPVA program would also see their copays for preventive services eliminated, extending the benefit beyond veterans themselves.
• Copay-free medications would expand to include both prescription and over-the-counter drugs that are part of preventive health services, on top of the existing exemption for opioid antagonists.
• If enacted, the changes would take effect 180 days after the bill is signed into law, giving the VA about six months to update its billing and pharmacy systems. The bill was introduced with bipartisan support from Senators Duckworth and Collins.