Medicare expands tobacco cessation coverage

Medicare will now pay for tobacco cessation counseling even if a patient does not have a tobacco-related disease, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced last week.

Under the new coverage, any smoker covered by Medicare will be able to receive tobacco cessation counseling from a qualified physician or other Medicare-recognized practitioner. Previously, tobacco counseling was covered only for individuals diagnosed with a recognized tobacco-related disease or who showed signs or symptoms of such a disease.

The new benefit will cover two individual tobacco cessation counseling attempts per year, each of which may include up to four sessions. The policy will apply to services under Parts A and B of Medicare. Beneficiaries will continue to have access to smoking-cessation prescription medication through Part D. Under the Affordable Care Act, effective Jan. 1, 2011, Medicare will cover preventive care services, including this tobacco cessation counseling, at no cost to beneficiaries. Later this year, Medicaid benefits will also be expanded to cover tobacco counseling for pregnant beneficiaries, according to HHS.

An estimated 4.5 million of the 46 million Americans who smoke are Medicare beneficiaries 65 or older and fewer than 1 million are younger than 65 and are covered by Medicare due to a disability, a press release reported.