Lack of Medicare coverage for at-home coronavirus tests sparks outcry

[dalton99a]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2022/01/28/medicare-coronavirus-tests/

Lack of Medicare coverage for at-home coronavirus tests sparks outcry
By Amy Goldstein and Christopher Rowland
Today at 10:00 a.m. EST

When the Biden administration began requiring insurers to pay for at-home coronavirus tests, it left out a group especially vulnerable to the virus. Medicare, the federal insurance system with 64 million older or disabled Americans, was not included in the order, and the absence has triggered a fusillade of complaints.

Members of Congress and advocates for older Americans have dispatched vehement letters to President Biden and his health secretary in recent days, urging the administration to alter Medicare’s rules so that it will uniformly pay for the antigen tests consumers use at home. Meanwhile, thousands of people on Medicare have called a federal hotline about the tests, confused about what is covered.

Under such pressure, officials inside the administration “are working around-the-clock, trying to figure out what is possible,” said Meena Seshamani, Medicare director at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).

Advocates contend that the agency, which has made it easier for people with Medicare to see doctors through telehealth during the pandemic, should be flexible about covering at-home tests, as well. But Medicare law does not make that simple. The fundamental obstacle is that the statute does not let the traditional version of Medicare — the insurance for nearly 6 in 10 people in the program — include over-the-counter health products, such as coronavirus rapid tests, among its benefits. Separate Medicare drug benefits are for prescriptions.

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What about Medicare Advantage?
From the article:
Kaiser Permanente: Yes
UnitedHealthcare: Maybe
Humana: No
Aetna: No

[DURHAM D]

1. Once again Medicare Advantage runs up the bill while

screwing regular Medicare.

[XanaDUer2]

2. this nt

[Ms. Toad]

4. Since most of those polled either don't cover the costs -

or "maybe" cover them, I don't see how this is "running up the bill." The amount paid on behalf of each Medicare Advantage plan doesn't change even if they now decide to offer free kits.

[Ms. Toad]

3. Compounding the problem -

Ohio has decided to stop sending test kits to the local health departments and libraries, but instead send them to the schools.

So - since I'm newly on Medicare - once the 4 kits (for the three members of our household) are gone, it's either go to a testing center or pay out-of-pocket.

I sent a note to the ODH, asking them to reconsider this decision - and got back the canned response - "We have way too many inquiries to respond individually. Here's info about COVID."