Medicare to Cover HIV Screenings

On December 8, CMS announced that, effective immediately, it will begin covering HIV screenings for Medicare beneficiaries who are at an increased risk for the infection, including pregnant women and beneficiaries of any age who voluntarily request the screening. An estimated 19% of U.S. residents diagnosed with AIDS are age 50 or older.

Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, was quoted as saying "Beginning with expanding coverage for HIV screening, we can now work proactively as a program to help keep Medicare beneficiaries healthy and take a more active role in evaluating the evidence for preventive services."

CMS has new flexibility in adding to Medicare's list of covered preventive services, thanks to the recently passed Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008, or MIPPA. Before MIPPA, Medicare could only cover additional preventive screening tests when Congress authorized it to do so.

Of the more than one million people believed to have HIV, the CDC estimates that about one quarter do not realize they are infected. While there is currently no cure for HIV, screenings can help identify infected individuals so that they can begin receiving medical treatment that can help delay the onset the AIDS. Without treatment, AIDS usually develops within 8 to 10 years.

The final decision regarding HIV coverage can be found here.