Last year, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) added 14 items and services for a range of chronic conditions to its list of preventive care benefits that are considered qualified medical expenses. Now, amid growing national concern about the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), the IRS has announced that high deductible health plans can be used to pay for both testing and treatment of the virus. The IRS’s quick response should reassure HSA participants during a time of heightened anxiety.
Notice 2020-15 confirms that an individual can use their HDHP for COVID-19 testing, stating in part:
“Part of the response to COVID-19 is removing barriers to testing for and treatment of COVID-19. Due to the nature of this public health emergency, and to avoid administrative delays or financial disincentives that might otherwise impede testing for and treatment of COVID-19 for participants in HDHPs, this notice provides that all medical care services received and items purchased associated with testing for and treatment of COVID-19 that are provided by a health plan without a deductible, or with a deductible below the minimum annual deductible otherwise required under 2 section 223(c)(2)(A) for an HDHP, will be disregarded for purposes of determining the status of the plan as an HDHP.”
In other words? HDHPs can cover the cost of testing and treatment of the Coronavirus before deductibles have been met. As of March 11, 118,162 cases in 113 countries had been confirmed, including 1,215 cases in the 43 jurisdictions of the U.S.
View the full IRS notice here. For more information on safety measures, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
For more information on the Coronavirus, visit: https://www.motivhealth.com/coronavirus/