U.S. Plans to End Public Health Insurance for Covid in May

The scheduled end of insurance on May 11th will bring about a complex series of policy changes, opening a new chapter in the government's response to the pandemic.

The Washington-Biden administration plans to phase out the coronavirus public health emergency in May, the White House said Monday.

This move has both symbolic weight and real consequences. Millions of Americans received free Covid tests, treatments and vaccines during the pandemic, but not all will remain free after the emergency is over. Officials said they want to maintain the state of emergency for a few more months so hospitals, health care providers and health officials can prepare for the various changes when it ends. On average, more than 500 people die each day from Covid-19 in the United States, and daily deaths nearly double during severe flu season. But now, three years later, the coronavirus no longer upends everyday life the way it used to. This is also because most of the population has received at least some protection against the virus through vaccination or previous infection.

Still, the White House said Monday that the country needed an orderly transition out of the public health emergency. The government also said it intended to phase out the state of emergency on the same day, May 11.

"The abrupt end of the emergency declaration will cause widespread disruption and uncertainty across states, hospitals, clinics and, most importantly, the healthcare system for tens of millions of Americans," the White House said in a statement. will bring

The announcement came on the eve of a scheduled vote in the House of Representatives on a bill that would immediately end the public health emergency. The bill, called Pandemic Is Over Act, is one of several pandemic-related measures slated to be considered this week by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. The White House issued a statement as part of the government's response to the law and another step to end the national emergency.

The exchange signaled a possible long-running political battle between House Republicans and the White House over how to deal with the pandemic. Republican lawmakers hope to put the Biden administration on the defensive, claiming it spent extravagantly in the name of battling the coronavirus.

“Rather than waiting until May 11, the Biden administration should join us now in immediately ending this declaration,” Representative Steve Scalise, Republican of Louisiana and the majority leader, said in a statement. “The days of the Biden administration being able to hide behind Covid to waste billions of taxpayer dollars on their unrelated, radical agenda are over.”

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The White House argues that it is only because of federal Covid policies mandating free tests, treatments and vaccines that the pandemic is now under better control. Covid was the third-leading cause of death from 2020 through mid-2022; now it is no longer among the top five killers, federal officials said.

The public health emergency was first declared by the Trump administration in January 2020, and it has been renewed every 90 days since then. The Biden administration had promised to warn states 60 days before it ended. The state of emergency was last renewed in early January, and many state health officials expected it to expire in mid-April.

The end of the emergency will bring about complex changes in the cost of Covid testing and treatment, which Americans normally receive for free. Whether you have private insurance, Medicare coverage, Medicaid coverage, or health insurance, you will face different fees. The state you live in can also play a role. Still, the impact may not be as dramatic as public health experts once feared. Medicaid enrollment surged during the pandemic.

But a congressional spending package enacted in December effectively broke that link and instead set an April deadline for states to begin losing additional funding for Medicaid coverage. , likely to begin gradual exclusion of Americans from Medicaid lists starting this year. By restructuring this costly policy, Congress could use projected savings to pay for expanded Medicaid benefits for children, postpartum mothers, and residents of U.S. territories. .

The December law also extended telemedicine visit coverage for Medicare recipients through 2024. Telemedicine has proven to be a lifeline for many during the pandemic. Had the state of emergency been lifted, the compensation would have ended.

Still, other services can be more expensive for Americans, especially those without insurance. Individuals with private health insurance or Medicare are entitled to eight free coronavirus tests each month. Insurers had to undergo the test, even if it was conducted by a provider who was not part of the network. Once the emergency is over, some Americans will pay for these tests out of their own pocket.

And while vaccines will continue to be covered by private insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid, some Americans will pay for their own COVID-19 treatments, such as the antiviral drug Paxlovid, once the emergency ends. may have to pay with Hospitals will also no longer receive higher Medicare payment rates for treating Covid patients.

Jennifer Cates, senior vice president of the Kaiser Family Foundation, said the state of emergency would provide an important break from the typical fragmented method of covering medical costs in the American health care system, allowing more of people said they gave them access to services they might not otherwise have had insurance coverage.

The White House decision could send the wrong message about how Americans should relax against the virus, she added.

“To the extent that people can lose their vigilance overnight, it can present some challenges,” she said.