Biden administration requires insurers to cover 8 at-home COVID-19 tests

As Americans grapple with a surge in coronaviruses cases, insurance companies will be required to cover eight over-the- counter at-home coronavirus tests per person each month, according to the Biden administration.

The White House said on Monday that there is no limit to the number of COVID- 19 tests, including at-home tests, that insurers must cover if they are ordered or administered by a health care provider.

The measures are part of a campaign by President Joe Biden to make testing more widely available to Americans facing soaring coronaviruses cases due to the highly infectious Omicron variant.

In December, Biden stated plans to distribute 500 million at-home coronaviruses test kits and stand up new federal testing sites, adding to the 20,000 already in existence. Experts said the announcement was too little too late: https://www.reuters.com. Healthcare- pharmaceuticals biden-omicron measures-too late-fast moving-virus experts -- 2021 -- 12 -- 23 amid testing shortages nationwide.

The Americans should be able to order the tests online later this month, according to White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki, noting that all contracts for rapid tests should be awarded over the next two weeks. The first was signed last week.

Under the insurance plan, the administration said insurers are still required to reimburse tests purchased by consumers outside of their network, at a rate of up to $12 per individual test.

It wasn't immediately clear what incentives were offered to insurers to agree to the plan. A request for comment was not immediately responded to by the Department of Health and Human Services.