Utah Medicaid will now cover COVID-19 tests for uninsured Utahns, state health officials announced on Monday.
Coverage begins June 1 and will continue through the public health emergency. Testing for active infections as well as antibodies will be covered, as well as any further diagnostic services such as X-rays.
Patients must be uninsured and meet citizenship and Utah residency requirements to receive the newly offered coverage, according to a news release from the Utah Department of Health.
Utahns may apply online at medicaid.utah.gov/covid-19-uninsured-testing-coverage/, and a UDOH employee will determine eligibility. Patients will be notified of the state’s decision within two to three business days, and then they will receive Medicaid cards. The application doubles as an application for full coverage under Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program, but that eligibility review may take up to 30 days.
Prior to the new Medicaid coverage for coronavirus tests, health care providers that provided tests to uninsured patients have been able to seek reimbursement through the Health Resources and Services Administration.
“However, HRSA is the payer of last resort and is subject to available funding,” the news release states. “Utah’s new Medicaid reimbursement program, now available through the end of the public health emergency period for testing and testing related services, offers enhanced funding and is not restricted by a finite federal budget.”
Erin is a reporter who has previously been an outdoor columnist and worked the crime beat. She was the lead reporter on The Tribune's Pulitzer-winning coverage of campus sexual assault. She has worked at newspapers in Michigan and Iowa and taught English for two years at teacher-training colleges in China.