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Illinois bars AI from delivering therapy without a licensed professional
Illinois enacted the Wellness and Oversight for Psychological Resources Act (HB 1806), which prohibits offering therapy or psychotherapy unless a licensed professional provides it and stops clinicians from letting AI make therapeutic decisions or talk therapeutically with clients. AI remains allowed for administrative and supplementary support. Nevada passed a similar ban, while Utah and New York chose disclosure and crisis-referral duties instead.
Why it matters
Mental-health chatbot makers now face a patchwork in which the same product is banned in some US states and merely labelled in others.
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What led here
Earlier developments on the same thread
- DevelopmentFDA rolls out 'Elsa', a generative AI assistant for all agency staff2 Jun 2025 · Launch · US
What happened next
Later developments on the same thread
- DevelopmentFTC orders seven firms to explain how AI companion chatbots protect children11 Sep 2025 · Enforcement or ruling · US
- DevelopmentCharacter.AI and Google agree to settle lawsuits over teen suicides and self-harm7 Jan 2026 · Enforcement or ruling · US
- DevelopmentWhite House sends Congress AI framework calling for preemption of state laws20 Mar 2026 · Policy · US
- DevelopmentCalifornia enacts SB 1119 requiring child-safety risk assessments for companion chatbots10 Sep 2026 · Rule change · US-CA
Same story elsewhere
What other countries and bodies did on this
- DevelopmentEU deal keeps AI medical devices under AI Act high-risk rules, delayed to 20287 May 2026 · Rule change · EU
- DevelopmentNHS England updates AI scribe guidance and launches supplier registry2 Apr 2026 · Policy · GB
- DevelopmentChina issues companion-AI rules banning virtual partners for minors10 Apr 2026 · Rule change · CN
- DevelopmentEU Digital Omnibus on AI enters force, delaying high-risk AI Act duties to 2027-2827 Jul 2026 · Rule change · EU
Rules in play
Laws and guidance this touches
- RuleNY AI companion lawUS-NY · In force · 5 Nov 2025
- RuleIllinois AI therapy ban (WOPR Act)US-IL · In force · 1 Aug 2025
- RuleUtah mental-health chatbot lawUS-UT · In force · 25 Mar 2025
- RuleFDA PCCP guidanceUS · In force · 4 Dec 2024
- RuleSB 243US-CA · In force · 13 Oct 2025
Threads by topic: Clinical AI Courts and liability Children and teens