COVID-19 Vaccine Resources: What Partners Need to Know
Posted on: 2/2/2021
The following message was sent on January 29 from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services:
As COVID-19 vaccines begin rolling out across the country CMS is taking action to protect the health and safety of our nation’s patients and providers and keeping you updated on the latest COVID-19 resources from HHS, CDC and CMS.
With information coming from many different sources, CMS has compiled resources and materials to help you share important and relevant information on the COVID- 19 vaccine with the people that you serve. You can find these and more resources on the COVID-19 Partner Resources page and the HHS COVID Education Campaign page. We look forward to partnering with you to promote vaccine safety and encourage our beneficiaries to get vaccinated when they have the opportunity.
If you are a healthcare provider:
Both the CDC and CMS have useful resources for your practice. Look to CDC for the latest science, vaccine administration information and patient-focused resources. You can find additional resources on the CDC Resources for Health Care Providers page.
CMS released a COVID-19 Provider Toolkit to ensure health care providers have the necessary tools to respond to the COVID-19 public health emergency. The toolkit includes information on how health care providers can enroll in Medicare to bill for administering COVID-19 vaccines, the COVID-19 Medicare coding structure, Medicare payment strategy for COVID-19 vaccine administration, roster and centralized billing, monoclonal antibody infusion and new COVID-19 Treatment Add-on Payment (NCTAP).
You can also review the COVID-19 FAQs which has information specific to health care providers who bill Medicare for administering COVID-19 vaccines.
Here's what else you should know:
Medicare covers the COVID-19 vaccine, so there will be no cost to your patients with Medicare. Medicare will reimburse you for administering the vaccine.
State governments are handling the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. Look for updates from your state and local officials as more doses of the vaccine become available for additional priority groups.
People without health insurance or whose insurance does not provide coverage of the vaccine can also get a COVID-19 vaccine at no cost. Providers administering the vaccine to people without health insurance or whose insurance does not provide coverage of the vaccine can request reimbursement for the administration of the COVID-19 vaccine through the Provider Relief Fund.
How can you help educate your patients?
You are a trusted source...encourage your patients to get the vaccine when it is available to them.
Let them know the vaccine is no cost and will keep them from getting COVID-19 Learn more about the benefits of the vaccine.
Let them know the vaccine is safe and that safety is a top priority for COVID-19 vaccines.
Remind them to continue practicing the 3Ws (Wear a Mask, Watch your distance, Wash your hands).
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the ACMA Public Policy Committee contributed to this information.
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