Medicare Beneficiaries Are Now Eligible for Free Over the Counter COVID 19 Tests

When the government announced that all American households would be eligible for four free at-home COVID-19 tests back in January 2022 - at the height of the Omicron variant - the news was everywhere. But another announcement, specifically for Medicare beneficiaries, followed soon after in February, and it seems to have flown under the radar. Beneficiaries with Medicare Part B are now eligible to receive up to eight over-the-counter COVID-19 tests a month. The tests, which can be picked up at eligible pharmacies or other participating locations, are now available as of Spring 2022.

GoHealth conducted a survey of 1,029 older adults who are currently enrolled in Medicare, and found that awareness of this new COVID-19 testing benefit was low - only 36% of those surveyed were aware of it. That number is striking when compared to their awareness of the at-home tests for all Americans announced in January - 77% of survey respondents were aware of the availability of those tests.

However, interest in this new benefit was high. As 68% of respondents expressed they were still at least somewhat concerned about COVID-19, this appears to be very welcome news.