Ensuring Kids Have Access to Medically Necessary Dental Care Act

Angela D. Alsobrooks

Democrat · MD · Senator

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

No cosponsors on record. Bills can pass without cosponsors — this often means the sponsor introduced the bill alone, either because it's a messaging bill, a chairman's mark, or simply early in the legislative cycle.

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

2026-07-22

Source: Congress.gov

The bill would remove caps on how much dental coverage children can receive each year or over their lifetime through the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), ensuring kids don't hit a limit and lose their dental benefits. It would also require states to provide additional dental coverage to fill any gaps for certain children whose regular CHIP plans don't fully cover necessary dental services. This change would affect low-income families who rely on CHIP to help pay for their children's dental care like cleanings, fillings, and other treatments.

AI-assisted summary generated from the official bill metadata (title, subjects, actions) sourced from Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed. Always verify against the official text linked below.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [S. 5088 Introduced in Senate (IS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 5088 To amend title XXI of the Social Security Act to prohibit lifetime or annual limits on dental coverage under the Children's Health Insurance Program, and to require wraparound coverage of dental services for certain children under such program. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES July 22, 2026 Ms. Alsobrooks introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend title XXI of the Social Security Act to prohibit lifetime or annual limits on dental coverage under the Children's Health Insurance Program, and to require wraparound coverage of dental services for certain children under such program. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Ensuring Kids Have Access to Medically Necessary Dental Care Act''. SEC. 2. PROHIBITION OF LIFETIME OR ANNUAL LIMITS ON DENTAL BENEFITS UNDER THE CHILDREN'S HEALTH INSURANCE PROGRAM. (a) In General.--Section 2103(c)(6) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1397cc(c)(6)) is amended-- (1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``, subject to subparagraph (D),'' after ``shall include''; (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``A State'' and inserting ``Subject to subparagraph (D), a State''; and (3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: ``(D) No lifetime or annual limits on dental benefits.--A State shall not establish lifetime or annual limits on the dollar value of benefits for dental services provided under the State child health plan to a targeted low-income child, and, in the case that the State elects to provide pregnancy-related assistance pursuant to section 2112, to a targeted low- income pregnant woman (as defined in section 2112(d)), including benefits for such services that are provided through dental coverage that is otherwise equivalent to a benchmark dental package described in subparagraph (C).''. (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take effect on the date that is 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 3. REQUIRING WRAPAROUND COVERAGE OF DENTAL SERVICES FOR CERTAIN CHILDREN UNDER CHIP. (a) In General.--Section 2110(b)(5) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1397jj(b)(5)) is amended-- (1) in the paragraph header, by striking ``Option'' and inserting ``Requirement''; (2) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``may waive'' and inserting ``shall waive''; and (3) by amending subparagraph (C) to read as follows: ``(C) Requirement for no more favorable treatment.--A State that provides dental-only supplemental coverage under this paragraph may not provide more favorable dental coverage or cost-sharing protection for dental coverage to children provided dental-only supplemental coverage under this paragraph than the dental coverage and cost-sharing protection for dental coverage provided to targeted low-income children who are eligible for the full range of child health assistance provided under the State child health plan.''. (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take effect on the date that is 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act. <all>

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