With Federal Funding Ended, Most Major Insurers Are Not Covering the Vaccine
As an update, this reporter went to a local CVS pharmacy to get the updated version of the Covid 19 mRNA vaccine recently approved for usage by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Unfortunately, even with health insurance, the shot will not be free because the federal government has ended funding for Covid 19 vaccines, and most of the major health insurance companies will not cover the vaccine even though it is available. The charge for the new vaccine at CVS is $200.
The reason the CVS pharmacist gave me was that my insurance company, LA Care Health Plan, has not yet updated its database to include coverage of the newest Covid 19 booster. I was informed that only Blue Shield and Medicare have updated their database to include the new booster as of today.
Unless you are insured with either of these plans, you will almost certainly have the same problem. It would be advisable to call your insurance company and check if and when they will cover this immunization. The seasonal flu shot was covered with no problem. It is alarming that during the biggest Covid surge in two years, when the United States has the largest death toll from Covid 19 in the world, insurance would not cover this vaccine, the Covid Bridge Program has effectively ended, and the government disseminated none of this information with the release of the vaccine. The current U.S. Covid death toll is 2.8K as of August 11, 2024.
When I spoke with a customer service representative at LA Care, they informed me that the insurance plan’s database would not be updated until September 5, when the new vaccine will be covered. I spoke with a company press representative and am waiting for a response from LA Care.
