Massachusetts grandfather denied COVID vaccine coverage despite Gov. Healey's order
Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey announced at a press conference that insurers in the state will be required to follow vaccine guidelines based off of the state Department of Public Health's recommendations and not the CDC or any federal agency. Despite this, some people are finding that they are being denied coverage when getting a COVID shot.
George Jenkins is a 70-year-old grandfather from Worcester who takes his health seriously. He eats a balanced diet and practices daily tai chi. Having battled COVID once, he didn't want to do it again, so he went to a nearby Stop & Shop pharmacy to get his flu and COVID vaccine.
"My insurance didn't cover it"
"They told me that while they had the COVID vaccine, my insurance didn't cover it," Jenkins said.
He has a United Healthcare Medicare Advantage plan.
"Sometimes when that's not covered, I have my Medicare card, so I pay for both. They said Medicare won't cover it because the advantage plan should cover it," said Jenkins. "I called United Healthcare and spoke to a rep on the phone, and they confirmed that they weren't covering it right now. I asked them why and they gave me very vague answers."
$200 out of pocket cost
Jenkins said the pharmacy offered to give him the shot, but it was going to cost him $200 out of pocket.
On United Healthcare's Website, it says that most United Healthcare plans include the COVID-19 vaccine. As mentioned previously, Governor Healey announced that insurers will have to cover vaccines based off of the state Department of Public Health recommendations, not federal.
"It will cover the full range of recommended vaccines including flu, COVID, as well as children's vaccines," said Governor Healey.
We reached out to United Healthcare and Medicare for answers. We heard back from United Healthcare. They wouldn't comment on Jenkins' case, but said they are committed to covering COVID-19 vaccines. Medicare told us they are looking into what happened.
Jenkins plans on going back for the shot in a few weeks to see if his insurance will cover it then.