Senate passes John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act

On September 25, 2026, the U.S. Senate passed the bipartisan John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act and the Aviation Medication Transparency Act. The legislation, honoring a University of North Dakota aviation student who died by suicide in 2021, requires the Federal Aviation Administration to modernize its mental health guidance, train more medical examiners, and publish an accessible list of safe medications to reduce career-threatening bureaucratic delays and mental health stigma.

John a. Hauser Act provisions

• ▪The United States Senate passed the John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act on September 25, 2026, requiring the Federal Aviation Administration to modernize mental health guidance and regularly review its Mental Health Special Issuance Process.
• ▪The John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act mandates funding to train additional medical examiners to improve the efficiency of the Federal Aviation Administration's Special Issuance Medical Certification process.
• ▪The John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act aims to reduce the professional stigma and career impact associated with aviation professionals seeking mental health care.

The Aviation Medication Transparency Act

• ▪The Aviation Medication Transparency Act requires the Federal Aviation Administration to publish and annually update an accessible list of safe medications for aviation professionals within one year of enactment.
• ▪The Aviation Medication Transparency Act requires the Federal Aviation Administration to specify duty-restriction periods for safe medications and list medications designated as "Do Not Issue."
• ▪The United States Senate passed the Aviation Medication Transparency Act on September 25, 2026, to require the Federal Aviation Administration to issue accessible guidance on safe medications.

Honoring John a. hauser

• ▪The John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act builds on initiatives including the John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Initiative Fund and the UpLift Peer Support program.
• ▪The John A. Hauser Mental Health in Aviation Act honors John A. Hauser, a University of North Dakota aviation student who died by suicide in an aircraft in October 2021.

Debatable claims

• ▪The FAA's strict mental health standards do more harm than good
• ▪Publicly listing approved pilot medications encourages unsafe self-medication