Connecticut PANS/PANDAS Coverage Law Offers Hope After a 14-Year Effort
For families living with PANS and PANDAS, receiving a diagnosis does not always lead directly to treatment. Even when a physician recommends care, insurance coverage can become another difficult and time-consuming barrier.
Connecticut families will soon have an important new protection.
At a Glance
Type: State insurance law
Bill: HB 5374
Law: Public Act No. 26-33
Passed: 2026
Signed: May 28, 2026
Effective: January 1, 2027
Coverage: Certain individual and group health insurance policies issued, renewed, amended, or continued in Connecticut
Treatments named: Treatment for PANS and PANDAS, including intravenous immunoglobulin therapy
Governor Ned Lamont signed HB 5374 into law on May 28, 2026. The measure passed the Connecticut House by a vote of 140–8 and received unanimous approval in the Senate, 36–0. Families, clinicians, lawmakers, and supporters later gathered for a ceremonial bill signing on July 14.
What the Law Changes
Beginning January 1, 2027, covered individual and group health insurance policies in Connecticut will be required to provide benefits for the treatment of pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome, known as PANS, and pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections, known as PANDAS.
The law specifically includes intravenous immunoglobulin therapy, commonly called IVIG. The inclusion of IVIG is significant because it is one of the more costly treatments prescribed for some patients and can be financially out of reach when insurance coverage is denied.
HB 5374 was a broader health coverage measure that also addressed scalp-cooling systems for people receiving chemotherapy, certain athletic prosthetic devices, and expanded access to infertility services. The PANS and PANDAS provision was included as part of this larger package of insurance requirements.
A Long Path to Passage
Connecticut’s 2026 law followed years of legislative work, public testimony, medical education, and family involvement.
ASPIRE describes the achievement as the result of 14 years of advocacy. Connecticut had considered earlier PANS and PANDAS measures and reports over multiple legislative sessions, including the creation of a state advisory council in 2013. The final passage of HB 5374 reflects a policy issue that had been studied and revisited for more than a decade.
During consideration of the 2026 bill, parents, affected children, physicians, psychologists, and other professionals submitted testimony describing the effects of delayed diagnosis, treatment denials, and the financial strain placed on families. Their testimony gave lawmakers both personal accounts and clinical perspectives to consider as the bill moved through the Insurance and Real Estate Committee and the General Assembly.
What the Law Means for Families
The law establishes a clear state requirement that covered policies recognize PANS and PANDAS treatment as an insurance benefit. This gives families and treating physicians a stronger statutory basis when requesting coverage after the law takes effect.
It does not necessarily mean that every requested treatment will be approved automatically. Insurers may still apply medical-necessity criteria, prior-authorization requirements, provider-network rules, and other plan provisions. The mandate also applies only to the individual and group policies covered by the act, so families will still need to confirm whether their particular plan is subject to Connecticut law.
Even with those limitations, explicitly naming PANS, PANDAS, and IVIG in state insurance law represents a substantial change. It moves the conditions out of an uncertain area of coverage and places them directly within Connecticut’s health insurance statutes.
What Connecticut’s Law Adds to the National Picture
Connecticut adds another state-level model for addressing insurance access for PANS and PANDAS.
Public Act No. 26-33 is relatively concise compared with laws that list a wider range of treatments. Its central requirement is clear: certain individual and group policies must cover PANS and PANDAS treatment, and that coverage specifically includes IVIG.
For policymakers, Connecticut provides an example of PANS and PANDAS language being incorporated into a broader health insurance bill rather than enacted as a stand-alone measure. Its legislative record also shows strong bipartisan support, with an overwhelming House vote and unanimous Senate passage.
For families and healthcare professionals, the law reflects growing recognition that sudden-onset neuropsychiatric conditions may require medical treatment beyond psychiatric symptom management alone. It also acknowledges that treatment access can be shaped not only by clinical decisions, but by the language contained in health insurance policy and state law.
Connecticut’s experience is one part of an expanding national record. As additional states adopt PANS and PANDAS coverage requirements, lawmakers, health plans, providers, and the public have a larger body of statutory language and implementation approaches available for review.
Review Connecticut’s Coverage Law and Legislative Record
These sources provide the enacted language, legislative history, advocacy background, and public record surrounding the new law: