What happens after the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency ends on May 11? | VERIFY

WASHINGTON D.C., DC — Whether you need at-home tests, to be vaccinated or even to get a booster shot, here is what's changing once the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency ends next month on May 11.

THE QUESTION

Will access to tests, vaccines or treatment change after the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency ends on May 11th? If so, how?

THE SOURCES

THE ANSWER

Yes, access to tests, vaccines, and treatments like Paxlovid will change in the near future for many people, but not just because the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency is ending.

For some, at-home COVID-19 tests could cost them out-of-pocket. Vaccines and treatments will be limited once supplies provided by the federal government run out.

WHAT WE FOUND

COVID-19 tests:

Once the Public Health Emergency ends, access to free, at-home COVID-19 tests will end for people with traditional Medicare.

Medicare will still pay for tests administered by a doctor, like PCR tests, but there could be a cost for the doctor's visit itself.

Private insurance and Medicare Advantage will also no longer be required to provide any free testing, though some might continue to do so.

Vaccines and treatments:

For vaccines and antiviral drugs like Paxlovid, access going forward isn’t tied to the Public Health Emergency. Instead, it’s a supply question.

The federal government has a stockpile of vaccines and antivirals that it has accumulated to help deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Those federal resources are free to anyone, regardless of insurance status.

However, numbers are limited, and ongoing access relies on federal funding, which our experts say Congress hasn’t provided.

For vaccines and treatments, access will continue in the near term, but unless the government makes new policy, costs might increase once federal supplies run out. That could majorly impact uninsured and underinsured individuals.

“As with access to healthcare generally, it is people without insurance who may face the greatest barriers to accessing COVID vaccines and tests and treatment when the public health emergency ends. And, critically, when the federal supply of vaccines is depleted,” said Cubanski.

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