House passes coronavirus response bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The U.S. House of Representatives today, by a vote of 363 – 40, approved an emergency coronavirus response package to help stimulate the economy, expand food assistance programs and provide paid sick leave for affected workers.

The legislation also includes a provision – originally introduced by U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette (D-CO) – to ensure any American who has health insurance can get tested for the coronavirus at no cost to them, if they are advised to do so by a doctor.

"We need to do everything we can to increase testing across the country and protect the health of the American people," DeGette said. "No one should have to worry about how they are going to pay for this test, and we can't afford to have people hesitating to come forward if they are sick because of its cost."

The provision – which was drawn from a stand-alone measure DeGette introduced earlier this week – will require that health insurers cover 100% of the cost of any coronavirus test that's provided to one of its beneficiaries. It also prohibits insurers from passing on any portion of the cost to patients in the form of cost-sharing.

To expand the nation's overall testing capacity, the FDA has taken steps to allow certain hospitals and private health labs to use their own tests to help screen patients for the virus. While the move will enable the U.S. to screen more patients for the virus, privately-run facilities that conduct the tests will be looking to bill someone for the procedure.

Vice President Mike Pence recently announced that the administration would seek to have the coronavirus tests deemed an "essential health benefit" under the terms of the Affordable Care Act. But while that move would have required insurers to cover the tests, it would not prevent them from then passing on a portion of the cost to patients.

And while top executives from some of the nation's largest health insurers pledged during a meeting with the president this week that they would waive any cost-sharing for the tests, lawmakers – including DeGette – have said the issue is too important to simply take companies at their word.

"We are in the midst of a public health crisis," DeGette said. "As we work to protect families from the virus, we also need to protect them from any unexpected medical bills tied to testing. This is too important of an issue for too many families to simply take the administration, or any one company, at its word. This bill will ensure anyone who needs a test is able to get one at no cost to them."

The legislation will, among other things, ensure that nearly 178 million Americans who have health insurance through their employer, as well as 11 million Americans who purchased health insurance through the ACA exchange, are able to get tested for the coronavirus at no cost to them, if a doctor orders that they have one done.

The bill also explicitly requires Medicare, which provides health care coverage for Americans 65 year of age and older, and Medicaid, the government-run health care plan for low-income Americans, to cover the full cost of any tests for their beneficiaries.