Medicare covers HIV screening: AHF lauds CMS

Dec 9 2009

AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), the largest global AIDS organization, today lauded the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), for its decision earlier today to cover HIV testing for Medicare beneficiaries who may be at increased risk for HIV exposure (MSM, IDU) as well as women who are pregnant, and beneficiaries of any age that request to be tested. The decision is effective immediately.

"We commend this decision by CMS to have Medicare cover HIV screening, a move which is certain to save lives; however, the population served by Medicaid in many ways is at far higher risk, and we would urge CMS to have Medicaid quickly follow suit and also cover HIV screening," said Michael Weinstein, President of AIDS Healthcare Foundation. "One quarter of the 1.1 million people in the US living with HIV currently do not know their HIV status. By knocking down a potential roadblock to testing for people who are at increased risk, CMS is making it easier for the Medicare beneficiaries they serve to get tested and linked to care and services, if necessary. It’s crucial that at-risk Medicaid recipients also have such ready access to HIV testing services.”

According to a CMS press statement announcing the expansion of HIV screening coverage, "The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) today announced its final decision to cover Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection screening for Medicare beneficiaries who are at increased risk for the infection, including women who are pregnant and Medicare beneficiaries of any age who voluntarily request the service. The decision is effective immediately. Under the recently passed Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 (MIPPA), CMS now has the flexibility of adding to Medicare's list of covered preventive services, if certain requirements are met. Prior to this law, Medicare could only cover additional preventive screening tests when Congress authorized it to do so. The decision is effective immediately.”

Source AIDS Healthcare Foundation