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Congress·In Committee·12 months ago

Bipartisan Bill Proposes Major Pay Boost for Doctors Combining Mental Health and Primary Care

Also known as: COMPLETE Care Act

Legislative Progress

✓ Filed
Review
Senate
House
President

Impact Analysis

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Key Points

  • This bill aims to make it easier for seniors and people with disabilities to get mental health support during their regular doctor visits. Instead of having to find a separate specialist, patients could get help for things like depression or anxiety right at their primary care office.
  • To encourage this, Medicare would pay doctors significantly more for these combined services. In 2027, payments for these specific services would jump by 75%. The extra pay would then slowly decrease to 50% in 2028 and 25% in 2029.
  • Starting in 2026, the government would provide expert help and training to medical offices. This technical assistance will teach doctors how to set up their practices to handle both physical and mental health at the same time.
  • This change is designed to fix a common problem where mental health and physical health are treated as completely separate things. By paying more, Congress hopes more doctors will hire mental health staff or use new tools to screen and treat patients.
Healthcare

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions
Mar 11, 2025Senate

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Mar 11, 2025

Introduced in Senate

What Happens Next

Projected impacts based on AI analysis

2026-01-01

Technical assistance becomes available for primary care practices

Doctor's offices can get expert help learning how to offer mental health services alongside regular care. This sets the stage before the payment increases begin.

2027-01-01

Medicare payment increases begin at 75% bonus

Doctors who offer behavioral health services during primary care visits start receiving 75% more from Medicare, making it much more financially attractive to provide integrated mental health care to seniors.

2029-01-01

Payment bonus drops to 25% in final year before expiring

The extra Medicare payments for integrated behavioral health services shrink to a 25% bonus in 2029 and then end entirely, meaning practices will need to sustain these services at regular payment rates after that.

Related News

5 articles
MedPage Today·over 2 years ago

Senate Committee Advances Bill on Mental Health, PBMs, and 'Ghost Provider' Networks

The Senate Finance Committee advanced a legislative package including incentives for mental health integration in primary care. The bill aims to close the 11-year gap between symptom onset and treatment by supporting team-based care models for Medicare beneficiaries.

C=
Psychiatric News·11 months ago

The Reintroduction of the Complete Care Act: A Vital Step Forward for Integrated Care

Senators John Cornyn and Catherine Cortez Masto reintroduced the COMPLETE Care Act to integrate mental health services into primary care. The bill promotes the Collaborative Care Model in Medicare, allowing patients to receive holistic care for depression and anxiety at their doctor's office.

C+
NeuroFlow·over 2 years ago

New Policy Changing the Mental Health Landscape: Extenders Act

The Better Mental Health Care, Lower-Cost Drugs, and Extenders Act embeds the principles of the COMPLETE Care Act. It proposes a tiered payment system for Medicare BHI services, starting at 175% of the fee schedule in 2026 to help offset implementation costs for primary care practices.

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Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

COMPLETE Care Act

Bill NumberS 931
Congress119th Congress
ChamberSenate
Latest ActionRead twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

Sponsor

Cosponsors

(1)
R: 1

Analysis generated by AI. While we strive for accuracy, this should not be considered legal or professional advice. Always verify information with official government sources.