The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the value of vaccines as an important measure of protection without which many more Americans, and Granite Staters, would have succumbed to the insidious virus. The pandemic has also focused attention on health inequities across populations in terms of access to the vaccine and testing. We must strive to do better.
One such inequity, too often overlooked, impacts Americans over the age of 65, and especially minorities over the age of 65. We’re talking specifically about Medicare Part D’s coverage of vaccines, or lack thereof.
Part D still allows health insurance plans to charge significant cost-sharing for many routinely recommended adult vaccines. This results in lower immunization rates among older Americans, putting them at risk of severe illness or even death from vaccine-preventable diseases. It also increases healthcare costs because patients end up seeking medical care, or in the hospital, adding stress to our healthcare system in general, something we can’t afford.
Vaccines are the gold standard of preventative measures to protect us, first, as children, against diseases like measles, mumps, whooping cough and more, and then as adults against diseases like pneumonia and shingles.
Having access to vaccines is critical at all stages of life, but many older Americans are deterred from getting them because of prohibitively expensive co-pays and cost-sharing. The Protecting Seniors Through Immunization Act (S 912/HR 1978) would eliminate Medicare vaccine co-pays and cost-sharing for Part D beneficiaries, aligning it with Part B which covers the complete cost of pneumococcal and influenza vaccines for those over 65.
This is a bill that is based on sound data that point to the necessity of reducing barriers to achieving public health.
For more than 25 years, we’ve prioritized removing cost barriers for childhood vaccines and it’s been a huge success. In addition, the Affordable Care Act requires that all insurance plans cover preventative care, including vaccines for adults, without cost-sharing. Why haven’t we extended this valuable access to vaccinations for adults who rely on Medicare?
When Congressional lawmakers passed the CARES act, everyone, including those on Medicare, was protected from any kind of cost-sharing associated with the COVID-19 vaccines. The idea was to get as many people vaccinated as possible. They should do the same when it comes to other life-saving preventative medicines.
Removing the cost barrier for Part D beneficiaries is the right thing to do from a public health perspective. It’s our sincere hope that New Hampshire’s congressional delegation will support this bill and work across the aisle to get it passed.
Many of us rely on Medicare, will rely on it, or have loved ones who rely on it. Older Americans on Medicare should have the same access to all recommended vaccines as our children and insured adults. They shouldn’t have to worry about whether they can afford to be immunized against potentially deadly diseases. It’s as simple as that.
(Suzanne Allison, RN BSN is on the steering committee of the VaxWell NH Immunization Coalition and a member of the New Hampshire Public Health Association. Ashley Ithal, MPH is vice president of the New Hampshire Public Health Association.)