COVID-19 Bill to Make Coronavirus Testing Free for Everyone
Many health insurance companies have voluntarily waived co-payments, deductibles, coinsurance, and other fees when testing for COVID-19. House Democrats are currently working to pass the Coronavirus Response Act primarily for families , making coronavirus testing free for anyone with a health plan, including Medicare and Medicaid, and the uninsured.
As Larry Levitt, executive vice president of health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, explained on Twitter , the COVID-19 bill will require all health plans to waive the cost sharing of coronavirus testing from a patient:
The bill includes a section that “requires the National Disaster Relief System to reimburse the cost of COVID-19 diagnostic testing provided to uninsured persons.” It also includes provisions for emergency paid sick leave, extended unemployment insurance, supplemental food security support through SNAP and similar programs, and other social benefits.
The COVID-19 bill is scheduled to be considered in the House of Representatives today and we will be updating this post. [UPDATE: The bill has been passed and is now law. Here’s what you need to know .]
If you have a high deductible health plan (often referred to as HDHP), the IRS has just passed a notice allowing HDHP to maintain its high deductible status even though those plans allow free coronavirus testing:
To ease the country’s response to the 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19), this notice stipulates that, until further instructions are issued, a health plan that is otherwise eligible to be a high deductible health plan (HDHP) under section 223 (c) (2) (A) of the Internal Revenue Code (Code) will not cease to be HDHP under section 223 (c) (2) (A) just because the plan provides medical benefits. related to testing and treating COVID. -19 no deductible or with deductible below the minimum deductible (self or family only) for HDHP. Consequently, an HDHP eligible person will not be ineligible under section 223 (c) (1), who can make a subsidized health savings account (HSA) tax.
In other words: HDHPs generally require you to pay a high deductible before your insurance company begins sharing treatment costs, with the exception of non-deductible preventive services such as Well Woman’s annual check-ups. On the positive side, you can save pre-tax dollars in your health savings account (HSA), which can be converted into retirement dollars if you don’t spend it on healthcare.
As such, the IRS’s decision to allow HDHP to cover coronavirus testing without requiring you to pay your high deductible – and without making you ineligible to contribute to the HSA – is kind of a big deal.
It’s also a reminder that our health insurance system is pretty ludicrous, but at least our government is trying to do the right thing during the coronavirus pandemic.