CMS helping providers and insurers prepare for swift vaccine administration
Last week, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a Final Rule with Comment Period (IFC) that establishes any vaccine receiving FDA authorization, either through an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) or licensed under a Biologics License Application (BLA), will be covered under Medicare as a preventive vaccine at no cost to beneficiaries. The IFC also implements provisions of the CARES Act that ensure swift coverage of a COVID-19 vaccine by most private health insurance plans without cost sharing from both in and out-of-network providers during the course of the public health emergency (PHE).
CMS released a set of toolkits for providers, states and insurers to help prepare for swift vaccine administration. These resources are designed to increase the number of providers that can administer the vaccine, ensure adequate reimbursement for administering the vaccine in Medicare, while making it clear to private insurers and Medicaid programs their responsibility to cover the vaccine at no charge to beneficiaries. In addition, CMS is taking action to increase reimbursement for any new COVID-19 treatments approved or authorized by the FDA.
Along with these regulatory changes, CMS is issuing three toolkits aimed at state Medicaid agencies, providers who will administer the vaccine, and health insurance plans. Together, these toolkits will help ensure the health care system is prepared to administer successfully a safe and effective vaccine by addressing issues related to access, billing and payment, and coverage.
Increasing Access to Vaccines for Medicare & Medicaid Beneficiaries
The toolkits give health care providers not currently enrolled in Medicare the information needed to administer and bill vaccines to Medicare patients. CMS is working to increase the number of providers that will administer a COVID-19 vaccine to Medicare beneficiaries when it becomes available. New providers are now able to enroll as a “Medicare mass immunizers” through an expedited 24-hour process. The ability to easily enroll as a mass immunizer is important for some pharmacies, schools, and other entities that may be non-traditional providers or otherwise not eligible for Medicare enrollment. CMS will share approved Medicare provider information with states to assist with Medicaid provider enrollment efforts. CMS is also making it easier for newly enrolled Medicare providers to enroll in state Medicaid programs to support state administration of vaccines for Medicaid recipients.
Coverage
As a condition of receiving free COVID-19 vaccines from the federal government, providers will not be allowed to charge consumers for administration of the vaccine. To ensure broad and consistent coverage across programs and payers, the toolkits have specific information for several programs, including:
Medicare: Beneficiaries with Medicare pay nothing for COVID-19 vaccines and their copayment/coinsurance and deductible are waived.
Medicare Advantage (MA): For calendar years 2020 and 2021, Medicare will pay directly for the COVID-19 vaccine and its administration for beneficiaries enrolled in MA plans. MA plans would not be responsible for reimbursing providers to administer the vaccine during this time. Medicare Advantage beneficiaries also pay nothing for COVID-19 vaccines and their copayment/coinsurance and deductible are waived.
Medicaid: State Medicaid and CHIP agencies must provide vaccine administration with no cost sharing for most beneficiaries during the public health emergency. Following the public health emergency, depending on the population, states may have to evaluate cost sharing policies and may have to submit state plan amendments if updates are needed.
Private Plans: CMS, along with the Departments of Labor and the Treasury, is requiring that most private health plans and issuers cover a recommended COVID-19 vaccine and its administration, both in-network and out-of-network, with no cost sharing. The rule also provides that out-of-network rates cannot be unreasonably low, and references CMS’s reimbursement rates as a potential guideline for insurance companies.
Uninsured: For providers administering the COVID-19 vaccine to individuals without insurance, reimbursement will be available from the Provider Relief Fund, administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).
Billing and Payment
The toolkits also address issues related to billing and payment. After the FDA either approves or authorizes a vaccine for COVID-19, CMS will identify the specific vaccine codes, by dose if necessary, and specific vaccine administration codes for each dose for Medicare payment. CMS and the American Medical Association (AMA) are working collaboratively on finalizing a new approach to report use of COVID-19 vaccines, which include separate vaccine-specific codes. Providers and insurance companies will be able to use these to bill for and track vaccinations for the different vaccines that are provided to their enrollees.
Medicare Payment
CMS also released new Medicare payment rates for COVID-19 vaccine administration. The Medicare payment rates will be $28.39 to administer single-dose vaccines. For a COVID-19 vaccine requiring a series of two or more doses, the initial dose(s) administration payment rate will be $16.94, and $28.39 for the administration of the final dose in the series. These rates will be geographically adjusted and recognize the costs involved in administering the vaccine, including the additional resources involved with required public health reporting, conducting important outreach and patient education, and spending additional time with patients answering any questions they may have about the vaccine. Medicare beneficiaries, those in Original Medicare or enrolled in Medicare Advantage, will be able to get the vaccine at no cost.
CMS is encouraging state policymakers and other private insurance agencies to utilize the information on the Medicare reimbursement strategy to develop their vaccine administration payment plan in the Medicaid program, CHIP, the Basic Health Program (BHP), and private plans. Using the Medicare strategy as a model would allow states to match federal efforts in successfully administering the full vaccine to the most vulnerable populations.
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