The influential US Preventive Services Task force also said that all adults should be checked for depression, consistent with past guidance.

The task force stopped short of a screening recommendation for suicide.

The panel acknowledged that suicide is a leading cause of death among American adults but said there was "not enough evidence on whether screening people without signs or symptoms will ultimately help prevent suicide".

It envisions the mental health screening as part of routine visits with primary care physicians, said Dr Lori Pbert, a task-force member and professor in the Department of Population and Quantitative Health Sciences at UMass Chan Medical School.

The task force, comprised of 16 independent volunteers, provides guidance on preventive care measures.

Insurance companies are often forced to cover services recommended by the task force, under a provision in the Affordable Care Act (informally known as Obamacare).

The recommendations are only for those who do not have a diagnosed mental health disorder or do not show recognised signs or symptoms.

Anxiety disorders - including generalised anxiety disorder, panic disorder and social anxiety, among others - are the most common mental illness in the US, affecting some 40 million adults every year.

"The problem is we don't have the work force to really take care of this," he told the BBC, adding that the country's 258 million adults had around 125,000 psychiatrists and psychologists between them.

"We know that we have an undersized mental health care workforce," she said.