Psychotherapy Services
Mental health treatment services explicitly prohibited from being conducted directly by AI for coverage.
How the laws define this
Both instruments converge on treating or alleviating mental health and behavioral conditions as the foundational purpose of psychotherapy services. However, they diverge significantly in how they define the scope and regulatory mechanics of these services. Under Use of Artificial Intelligence in Health Care, the definition focuses on therapeutic services aimed at treating mental health conditions, embedding an explicit prohibition against AI systems conducting these services directly for coverage and billing purposes under the Act. In contrast, PSYCHOTHERAPY ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE RESTRICTIONS provides a broader, process-based clinical scope. It details specific activities such as treatment, diagnosis, testing, assessment, or counseling carried out within a professional relationship to help individuals or groups resolve conflicts, understand motivation, or modify interfering behaviors. This second framework emphasizes structured interventions delivered either as a single session or over time, without making an explicit billing or coverage prohibition part of the core definition itself.
Synthesised from the 2 statutory definitions below. Each one is quoted in full, with its source.
How jurisdictions differ
What is distinctive in each definition, binding law in force first.
| Jurisdiction | Instrument | Status | What is distinctive |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado, United States | Concerning restrictions on the use of artificial intelligence relating to psychotherapy services. | In Force | This definition provides a detailed scope covering treatment, diagnosis, testing, assessment, or counseling to alleviate disorders, understand motivation, resolve conflicts, or modify behaviors via planned interventions, unlike the more concise coverage-focused definition. |
| Colorado, United States | Concerning the use of artificial intelligence in health care. | Awaiting Entry | This definition limits psychotherapy services to therapeutic services aimed at treating mental health conditions, explicitly tying the prohibition to coverage and billing purposes under the Act. |
What it triggers
- In Colorado, mental health providers are prohibited from using artificial intelligence for direct therapeutic communication or unsupervised treatment.source
- In Colorado, psychotherapy services are explicitly prohibited from being conducted directly by an AI system for coverage and billing purposes under the Act.source
Definitions (2)
Therapeutic services aimed at treating mental health conditions, explicitly prohibited from being conducted directly by an AI system for coverage and billing purposes under the Act.
Treatment, diagnosis, testing, assessment, or counseling in a professional relationship to assist individuals or groups in alleviating behavioral and mental health disorders, understanding motivation, resolving conflicts, or modifying behaviors that interfere with effective functioning. It follows a planned procedure of intervention over time or as a single intervention.
Questions and answers
What AI uses are banned in psychotherapy under Colorado HB 1195?
Colorado HB 1195 prohibits mental health providers from using artificial intelligence for direct therapeutic communication or unsupervised treatment. It mandates human oversight and informed consent. The Act took effect on August 12, 2026.
Can AI directly provide psychotherapy services for billing in Colorado?
Under Colorado HB 26-1139, therapeutic services aimed at treating mental health conditions are explicitly prohibited from being conducted directly by an AI system for coverage and billing purposes.
What does psychotherapy services include per Colorado laws?
Colorado HB 1195 defines it as treatment, diagnosis, testing, assessment, or counseling to assist in alleviating behavioral and mental health disorders through planned interventions. Colorado HB 26-1139 describes it as therapeutic services for mental health conditions.