Medicare to cover obesity counseling without cost sharing

Dec 1 2011

Medicare officials announced Tuesday that this preventive service will cover screening and counseling in primary care providers' offices.

CQ HealthBeat: Obesity Counseling To Be Covered By Medicare Without Cost Sharing
Preventive services for obesity will be covered by Medicare without cost sharing by enrollees, Medicare officials announced late Tuesday. A Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services statement said that the new benefit will cover screening for obesity and counseling in primary care providers' offices. Obese beneficiaries will receive one face-to-face counseling visit per week for the first month and then every other week for the next five months. Those who lose at least 6.6 pounds during the first six months will be eligible for once-a-month visits for another six months (11/29).

Meanwhile, Minnesota Public Radio reports on the related challenges primary care physicians face -;

Minnesota Public Radio: Ask Dr. Hallberg: Talking To Your Physician About Your Weight
When you go to your doctor's office for a routine visit, you'll usually get weighed in, and you might even have a conversation about weight loss -; but how effective have primary care providers been in controlling obesity and its associated medical problems? (Hallberg and Crann, 11/29).