Coronavirus: Shalala introduces plan to make insurers pay for COVID-19 tests

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Miami Democratic Rep. Donna Shalala introduced legislation Tuesday that would require health insurers to cover the full costs of coronavirus tests for any American who has health insurance through their employer, or who has purchased an Obamacare plan.

Shalala’s bill, the Covering Coronavirus Test Act of 2020, adds the coronavirus test to the Affordable Care Act’s list of preventive health services that insurers are required to cover at no cost to patients. The legislation would prevent insurance companies from passing off any portion of the testing cost to consumers.

“Our government has a responsibility to do everything it can to manage this crisis,” said Shalala, who served as former President Bill Clinton’s Health and Human Services secretary from 1993 to 2001. “One of the biggest barriers to addressing this emergency is figuring out how many people have been infected by COVID-19. By reassuring the public that they will not bear any out-of-pocket costs for testing for the virus, this bill will help us get a true sense of the scale and rate of infection in the U.S. and allow the government to deploy the right measures to keep the American people safe.”

Shalala’s bill, which was also introduced by Colorado Democratic Rep. Donna DeGette, comes as lawmakers are criticizing the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s novel coronavirus testing capacity. The CDC’s website says 4,856 tests were conducted at public health laboratories across the country through Monday.

“In order to effectively curb the spread of this virus here in the U.S., we must increase testing immediately,” DeGette said in a statement. “No patient should hesitate getting a test done if a doctor thinks it’s necessary because of the cost. This legislation will ensure that anyone who has health insurance through their employer, or through of the ACA exchanges, can get the test done at no cost to them.”

Florida Republican Sen. Marco Rubio also criticized the lack of available tests on Tuesday.

“It is inexplicable and inexcusable that this far into the game we do not have more tests available at the local level to be able to test people at hospitals and their doctor’s offices,” Rubio said in a video. “That needs to be made available immediately so we know who to stay away from and we know who’s infected and needs to stay home.”

President Donald Trump defended the CDC’s testing capability after meeting with Republican senators on Tuesday.

“We had to change things that were done that were nobody’s fault,” Trump said to reporters. “But the testing has gone very well. And when people need a test, they can get a test. When the professionals need a test, when they need tests for people, they can get the test.”

Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services director Seema Verma said Tuesday that Medicare and Medicaid will cover the cost of coronavirus testing with no out-of-pocket costs for beneficiaries, a move that affects about 130 million people.

“CMS is responsible for managing Medicare and Medicaid programs and also developing and enforcing safety requirements in all of our healthcare institutions across the country,” Verma said in a teleconfrence hosted by the AARP. “The good news is no matter what type of program you’re in you can get a coronavirus test with no cost sharing.”

Verma also said she was in a meeting with Vice President Mike Pence and got a commitment from insurance companies, not only Medicare plans but all insurance companies, to cover the cost of coronavirus tests with no cost sharing.

Shalala’s bill would treat coronavirus tests in the same way as flu shots and mammograms, meaning insurers must cover the full cost of the service provided. It would affect the 178 million Americans who have health insurance through their employer and the additional 11 million Americans enrolled in an Obamacare program.

The legislation would exempt the coronavirus test from a one-year waiting period for new preventive health services. The tests would be covered by insurers the day the bill is signed into law.

Shalala and DeGette said they are working to have the testing bill included in any future coronavirus-related legislation Congress takes up in the coming weeks.

Shalala introduced a separate bill on Tuesday that would require the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to issue a temporary emergency standard for healthcare facilities to implement infectious disease exposure control plans. The bill would force the Department of Labor to oversee coronavirus response plans that protect healthcare workers.

“This bill will make sure that we can keep our healthcare workers safe in the face of a rapidly evolving public health emergency,” Shalala said.

Miami Herald staff writer Dan Chang contributed to this report.