H 7795Health Insurance

Human Services - Medical Assistance

This bill requires Medicaid to pay for mental health services provided by graduate student interns undergoing clinical training.

Held for study

Population
Affected

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Introduced Feb 12, 2026Committee House Finance

Plain-English Summary

This bill mandates that the state’s Medicaid program provide reimbursement for mental health services delivered by graduate student interns. To qualify, these interns must be assigned by an accredited college or university to a clinical training agency or facility. The legislation allows these students to be compensated from the reimbursement funds. Additionally, it permits the supervising organizations to keep a portion of the funds to cover the administrative costs of supervision. The interns must be in a program leading to licensure or board certification as a mental health professional.

For younger readers

When people feel sad, worried, or scared, they often talk to a helper called a mental health professional. To become one of these professionals, students have to practice doing the job while they are still in school. This new law says that the government health insurance, called Medicaid, must pay for the help these students give to people. This allows the students to get paid for their hard work and helps the offices where they are learning to pay for the costs of teaching them.

Who & Where It Applies

Impacted groups

Graduate student internsMental health agenciesMedicaid recipientsColleges and universitiesLicensed mental health supervisors

Impacted communities

All

Constitutional & Fiscal Check

None Likely

Estimated cost

Amount unknown

Estimated revenue

None

Bill Analysis

Both viewpoints

For Progressives

Expands access to critical mental health services for low-income populations by utilizing qualified graduate students, ensuring more Medicaid recipients can receive timely care.
Promotes economic equity by ensuring graduate students are compensated for their labor, removing financial barriers that often prevent low-income students from entering the mental health profession.
Strengthens the social safety net by providing financial support to community health agencies, allowing them to cover supervisory costs and sustain their training programs.
Could create a two-tiered healthcare system where low-income Medicaid recipients are primarily treated by students in training while wealthier individuals see fully licensed professionals.
Might encourage agencies to rely on lower-cost student labor to maximize reimbursements rather than hiring full-time, unionized, or fully licensed staff to provide essential services.
Lacks specific language guaranteeing a living wage for the students, potentially allowing agencies to retain the majority of the reimbursement while paying interns very little.

For Conservatives

Increases the supply of available mental health providers within the marketplace, potentially reducing bottlenecks and wait times for services without creating new government agencies.
Encourages professional development and work experience by allowing students to earn compensation through their own labor and training rather than relying solely on loans or grants.
Allows private organizations to manage their own overhead by retaining a portion of reimbursements to cover supervisory expenses, respecting business operational needs.
Expands the scope and cost of the Medicaid program, leading to increased government spending and a higher burden on taxpayers to fund services provided by non-licensed students.
Increases the size of the welfare state by creating new streams of government funding for universities and healthcare agencies under the guise of training.
Risks diminishing the quality of care and accountability by allowing taxpayer funds to pay for services rendered by trainees who are not yet fully licensed or board-certified.

Votes

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Full Bill Text

Changes to existing Rhode Island law · 13 additions

SECTION 1. Chapter 40-8 of the General Laws entitled "Medical Assistance" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section: 40-8-33. Graduate student services covered. Notwithstanding any general law, public law, special law, rule or regulation to the contrary, Medicaid reimbursement shall be provided under this chapter for services provided by a graduate student intern in one of the mental health professional disciplines who is formally assigned by an accredited college/university to an agency or facility for clinical training. The graduate student intern shall be allowed to receive compensation from these reimbursed hours and the supervising organization is allowed to retain a portion of the compensation to cover expenses related to supervisory work. A mental health practitioner working as a clinical trainee shall:

(1) Comply with requirements for licensure or board certification as a mental health professional including supervised practice in the delivery of mental health services for the treatment of mental illness; or

(2) Be a graduate student in a bona fide field placement or internship under a program leading to completion of the requirements for licensure as a mental health professional.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.