Regulon — VT-H-0816 · VT H 816 (AI in Mental Health Services)

2026-01-29 committee referral Read first time and referred to the Committee on Health Care

2026-03-13 Notice Calendar: Favorable with Amendment Notice Calendar: Favorable with Amendment

2026-03-17 chamber passage Third Reading ordered

2026-03-17 Action Calendar: Favorable with Amendment Action Calendar: Favorable with Amendment

2026-03-17 Read second time Read second time

2026-03-17 Rep. Critchlow of Colchester reported for the Committee on Health Care Rep. Critchlow of Colchester reported for the Committee on Health Care

2026-03-17 Report of Committee on Health Care agreed to Report of Committee on Health Care agreed to

2026-03-18 chamber passage Action Calendar: Third Reading

2026-03-18 Read third time and passed Read third time and passed

2026-03-20 committee referral Read 1st time & referred to Committee on Health and Welfare

2026-05-01 Entered on Notice Calendar Entered on Notice Calendar

2026-05-01 Second Reading Second Reading

2026-05-01 Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare

2026-05-05 New Business/Second Reading New Business/Second Reading

2026-05-05 Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare

2026-05-06 Unfinished Business/Second Reading Unfinished Business/Second Reading

2026-05-06 Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare

2026-05-07 Unfinished Business/Second Reading Unfinished Business/Second Reading

2026-05-07 Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare Favorable report with proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare

2026-05-07 Read 2nd time, reported favorably with proposal of amendment by Senator Benson for Committee on Health and Welfare Read 2nd time, reported favorably with proposal of amendment by Senator Benson for Committee on Health and Welfare

2026-05-07 Proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare agreed to Proposal of amendment by Committee on Health and Welfare agreed to

2026-05-07 3rd reading ordered 3rd reading ordered

2026-05-08 New Business/Third Reading New Business/Third Reading

2026-05-08 Pending third reading, Senator Hashim and Lyons proposal of amendment, agreed to Pending third reading, Senator Hashim and Lyons proposal of amendment, agreed to

2026-05-08 Read 3rd time & passed in concurrence with proposal of amendment Read 3rd time & passed in concurrence with proposal of amendment

2026-05-12 Senate Message: Passed in concurrence with proposal of amendment Senate Message: Passed in concurrence with proposal of amendment

2026-05-13 Notice Calendar: Senate Proposal of Amendment Notice Calendar: Senate Proposal of Amendment

2026-05-14 Action Calendar: Senate Proposal of Amendment Action Calendar: Senate Proposal of Amendment

2026-05-14 Rep. Black of Essex moved to postpone action until May 15, 2026, which was agreed to Rep. Black of Essex moved to postpone action until May 15, 2026, which was agreed to

2026-05-15 Action Calendar: Action postponed until May 15, 2026 Action Calendar: Action postponed until May 15, 2026

2026-05-15 Senate proposal of amendment not concurred in and Committee of Conference requested upon motion of Rep. Black of Essex Senate proposal of amendment not concurred in and Committee of Conference requested upon motion of Rep. Black of Essex

2026-05-15 Speaker appointed Reps. Berbeco of Winooski, Cina of Burlington, and Taylor of Mendon as members of the Committee of Conference on the part of the House Speaker appointed Reps. Berbeco of Winooski, Cina of Burlington, and Taylor of Mendon as members of the Committee of Conference on the part of the House

2026-05-15 Rules suspended and bill messaged forthwith to the Senate as moved by Rep. McCoy of Poultney Rules suspended and bill messaged forthwith to the Senate as moved by Rep. McCoy of Poultney

2026-05-19 House message: House refused to concur in Senate proposal of amendment & requested Conference Committee; House Conference Committee members appointed House message: House refused to concur in Senate proposal of amendment & requested Conference Committee; House Conference Committee members appointed

Summary

Regulates the use of artificial intelligence by mental health professionals in Vermont and broadly prohibits any person, corporation, or entity from offering, providing, or advertising mental health services that represent AI as providing therapeutic judgment, diagnosis, treatment, or therapeutic communication. Mental health professionals may use AI for administrative support, supplementary support, and operational or quality-improvement functions so long as they retain sole responsibility for therapeutic decisions and obtain patient consent for AI recording of identifiable therapeutic communications. AI may not independently make therapeutic decisions, diagnose, determine treatment, or generate treatment plans. Violations of the general prohibition (18 V.S.A. § 7115) are deemed violations of the Vermont Consumer Protection Act, enforceable by the Attorney General and by private parties. Misuse of AI by licensed professionals (26 V.S.A. § 7101) constitutes unprofessional conduct subject to professional discipline. Religious counseling, uncertified peer support, and generalized educational/self-help resources are exempt.

Enforcement & Penalties

Enforcement Authority

Attorney General enforcement under the Consumer Protection Act, 9 V.S.A. chapter 63, subchapter 1. The AG has authority to make rules, conduct civil investigations, enter into assurances of discontinuance, and bring civil actions. Private parties have the same rights and remedies as provided under 9 V.S.A. chapter 63, subchapter 1. For licensed mental health professionals, misuse of AI under 26 V.S.A. § 7101 constitutes unprofessional conduct under 3 V.S.A. § 129a, subjecting the licensee to professional disciplinary action including potential denial or revocation of license by the relevant licensing board.

Penalties

Private parties have the same rights and remedies as provided under the Vermont Consumer Protection Act, 9 V.S.A. chapter 63, subchapter 1, which provides for injunctive relief, actual damages, and other remedies available under that chapter. Professional disciplinary sanctions including license denial, suspension, or revocation are also available for licensed mental health professionals. Nothing in the act precludes or supplants any other statutory or common law remedies.

Who Is Covered

"Mental health professional" means an individual licensed, certified, or rostered, respectively, to provide mental health services as a physician pursuant to chapter 23 or 33 of this title, an advance practice registered nurse specializing in psychiatric mental health pursuant to chapter 28 of this title, a psychologist pursuant to chapter 55 of this title, a peer support provider or peer recovery support specialist pursuant to chapter 60 of this title, a social worker pursuant to chapter 61 of this title, an alcohol and drug abuse counselor pursuant to chapter 62 of this title, a clinical mental health counselor pursuant to chapter 65 of this title, a marriage and family therapist pursuant to chapter 76 of this title, a psychoanalyst pursuant to chapter 77 of this title, or an applied behavior analyst pursuant to chapter 95 of this title, and a nonlicensed or noncertified psychotherapist, noncertified psychoanalyst, or any other professional that provides mental health services except as exempted in subsection (e) of this section.

Compliance Obligations 6 obligations · click obligation ID to open requirement page

HC-02 AI in Licensed Professional Practice Restrictions · HC-02.3 · DeployerProfessional · Healthcare

18 V.S.A. § 7115(b)

Plain Language

No person, corporation, or other entity may offer, provide, or advertise mental health services in Vermont that represent AI as providing therapeutic judgment, diagnosis, treatment, or therapeutic communication. This is a broad prohibition that applies to any entity — not just licensed professionals — and effectively bars AI-as-therapist products from the Vermont market. The carve-out permits AI use for administrative, documentation, operational, or quality-improvement purposes, but only where a mental health professional retains clinical responsibility under 26 V.S.A. § 7101.

Statutory Text

(b) A person, corporation, or other entity shall not offer, provide, or advertise mental health services in the State that represent artificial intelligence as providing therapeutic judgment, diagnosis, treatment, or therapeutic communication. Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit the use or disclosure of the use of artificial intelligence for administrative, documentation, operational, or quality-improvement purposes when a mental health professional retains clinical responsibility as authorized pursuant to 26 V.S.A. § 7101.

Other · Healthcare

18 V.S.A. § 7115(c)(1)-(2)

Plain Language

Violations of the general prohibition on representing AI as providing mental health services are deemed violations of the Vermont Consumer Protection Act. This gives the Attorney General rulemaking, investigation, and civil action authority, and gives private parties the same rights and remedies available under the CPA. The savings clause preserves all other statutory and common law remedies. This provision activates an enforcement mechanism but creates no independent compliance obligation.

Statutory Text

(c)(1) A violation of this section shall be deemed a violation of the Consumer Protection Act, 9 V.S.A. chapter 63. The Attorney General has the same authority to make rules, conduct civil investigations, enter into assurances of discontinuance, and bring civil actions, and private parties have the same rights and remedies as provided under 9 V.S.A. chapter 63, subchapter 1. (2) Nothing in this section shall be construed to preclude or supplant any other statutory or common law remedies.

Other · Healthcare

3 V.S.A. § 129a(a)(30)

Plain Language

Misuse of AI by a mental health professional, as defined in 26 V.S.A. § 7101, is added to the statutory list of unprofessional conduct. This subjects violating licensees to professional disciplinary action — including potential denial, suspension, or revocation of license — but creates no new independent compliance obligation beyond those specified in § 7101.

Statutory Text

(30) For any mental health professional, misuse of artificial intelligence pursuant to 26 V.S.A. § 7101.

HC-02 AI in Licensed Professional Practice Restrictions · HC-02.1 HC-02.2 · Professional · Healthcare

26 V.S.A. § 7101(b)

Plain Language

Mental health professionals may use AI for administrative support (scheduling, billing, claims processing), supplementary support (clinical record preparation, deidentified data analysis, workforce planning), and operational or quality-improvement functions — but only if the professional retains sole responsibility for all therapeutic decisions. The professional must review, modify where necessary, and approve the final product of any AI-assisted work. Notably, clinical decision support tools like algorithmic risk scoring and data analytics are permitted when used under professional supervision, because the definition of 'therapeutic decision' expressly excludes them. This provision establishes a permissive envelope around non-therapeutic AI uses while reinforcing that the human professional must remain the decision-maker.

Statutory Text

(b) Permitted uses. A mental health professional may use artificial intelligence systems for administrative support, supplementary support, and operational or quality-improvement functions, provided the professional retains sole responsibility for therapeutic decisions. Permitted uses include scheduling, billing, coding, and claims processing; transcription and documentation support; preparation and maintenance of clinical records; deidentified data analysis for quality improvement; and workforce and capacity planning where the mental health professional reviews, modifies where necessary, and approves the final product.

HC-02 AI in Licensed Professional Practice Restrictions · HC-02.4 · Professional · Healthcare

26 V.S.A. § 7101(c)(1)-(2)

Plain Language

All AI-assisted administrative and supplementary support tasks — including transcription and recording — are subject to Vermont's existing mental health confidentiality protections (18 V.S.A. §§ 1881 and 7103). When AI is used to record identifiable therapeutic communications, the patient or client must provide written, informed, voluntary, and revocable consent. Consent cannot be obtained through broad terms-of-use agreements, passive acceptance, or deceptive practices. Consent is not required for AI use in administrative tasks or deidentified operational uses. This is a narrower consent requirement than some jurisdictions that require consent for any AI use in therapeutic settings — here it is triggered specifically by AI recording of identifiable therapeutic communications.

Statutory Text

(c) Confidentiality and consent. (1) Any administrative support or supplementary support tasks conducted using artificial intelligence, including transcription and recording, shall be subject to the disclosure prohibitions in 18 V.S.A. §§ 1881 and 7103. (2) Consent by a patient or client is required when artificial intelligence is used to record identifiable therapeutic communications.

HC-02 AI in Licensed Professional Practice Restrictions · HC-02.2 · Professional · Healthcare

26 V.S.A. § 7101(d)(1)-(2)

Plain Language

Mental health professionals are prohibited from using AI in any way that allows the AI to independently make therapeutic decisions, independently diagnose, independently determine treatment, or independently generate treatment plans. The word 'independently' is critical — AI may assist with all of these functions so long as the professional retains final decision-making authority. Clinical decision support tools (algorithmic risk scoring, data analytics) are expressly excluded from the definition of 'therapeutic decision' and therefore not prohibited when used under professional supervision. The savings clause confirms that professionals may freely disclose their use of AI for permitted administrative or supplementary support purposes.

Statutory Text

(d) Prohibited uses. (1) A mental health professional shall not use artificial intelligence in a manner that allows the artificial intelligence to independently make therapeutic decisions, independently diagnose, independently determine treatment, or independently generate treatment plans. (2) Nothing in this subsection shall prohibit a mental health professional from disclosing or describing the mental health professional's use of artificial intelligence for administrative support or supplementary support purposes to a prospective, current, or former patient or client.