This content material initially appeared on diaTribe. Republished with permission.
By April Hopcroft
Key takeaways:
- Confirm your CGM protection and prices along with your insurance coverage plan and healthcare supplier. Use the ADCES software for detailed protection info.
- Medicare gives broad CGM protection with some out-of-pocket prices. Medicaid protection varies by state. People who find themselves on each Medicare and Medicaid don’t have any out-of-pocket bills.
- Most industrial insurers cowl CGMs for sort 1 diabetes and for folks with 2 diabetes on a number of each day injections or insulin pumps. Protection specifics range by insurer and state.
So that you’ve determined to get a steady glucose monitor (CGM). You’ve learn up on all of the fashions, familiarized your self with the latest options, and are able to take the following step.
Nevertheless, a problem awaits: Navigating insurance coverage protection.
As a place to begin, make sure to examine along with your insurance coverage plan to know what protection you might have and what your out-of-pocket prices may be.t. It’s a good suggestion to talk along with your healthcare supplier about insurance coverage protection, too. Your supplier’s workplace could have a selected employees member whose job is to assist folks navigate insurance coverage protection.
You possibly can try the Affiliation of Diabetes Care and Schooling Specialists (ADCES) CGM insurance coverage protection software. Enter the title of your insurance coverage, the kind of plan you may have, and your state of residence to get a abstract of insurance coverage protection for CGMs.
CGM protection in case you have sort 1 diabetes
CGM is mostly coated for folks with sort 1 diabetes, no matter sort of insurance coverage.
Medicare and Medicaid protection
Nearly all of folks within the US recognized with diabetes get insurance coverage protection via Medicare or Medicaid, in keeping with Bruce Taylor, senior director of presidency affairs and market entry at Dexcom.
Medicare and Medicaid are authorities insurance coverage packages. Medicare is a nation-wide program that gives well being protection to folks ages 65 and older. Medicaid is a joint federal and state program that gives well being protection to folks with restricted earnings and assets.
Medicare additionally gives well being protection to some folks underneath age 65 with sure disabilities (similar to kidney illness requiring dialysis or a transplant) who obtain Social Safety incapacity advantages, no matter earnings degree.
Medicare gives broad protection of CGM, whereas Medicaid protection varies by state.
Medicare protection gives entry to the next CGMs:
- FreeStyle Libre 14-day, Libre 2, and Libre 3 – offered you use the readers to assessment glucose knowledge on some days every month.
- Dexcom G6 and G7
- Guardian 3 and Guardian 4 (when used with an insulin pump system)
- Be aware that the Guardian Join CGM-only system is just not coated by Medicare as a result of it doesn’t embrace a sturdy receiver to satisfy Medicare profit necessities.
- Eversense E3 implantable sensor
After assembly the yearly Half B deductible (for medical tools protection), folks with Medicare often pay 20% of the full value out of pocket.
Medicaid protection varies from state to state, as do the eligibility necessities to qualify for Medicaid – see in case you qualify right here.
As of Might 2024, 48 states and Washington, D.C. present some quantity of CGM protection for Medicaid beneficiaries. Presently, 29 of those states cowl CGM for individuals who use insulin via a pharmacy profit (as an alternative of medical profit), which makes it simple to get a CGM at a neighborhood pharmacy; usually, there isn’t a out of pocket value.
People who find themselves twin eligible – which means they’re enrolled in each Medicare and Medicaid – don’t have any out of pocket bills for a CGM.
Business insurance coverage via an employer
Business insurance coverage, usually known as personal insurance coverage, is the commonest type of medical health insurance within the US. Most industrial insurers (similar to Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Protect, Cigna, Kaiser, and UnitedHealthcare) cowl the entire main CGMs for folks with sort 1 diabetes.
In keeping with Abbott, most individuals with personal or industrial insurance coverage pay lower than $40 monthly for his or her FreeStyle Libre CGM sensors.
Taylor, from Dexcom, famous that the majority commercially insured customers have a $0 copay for his or her Dexcom CGM. In any other case, the co-pay is often $20 or much less monthly when protection is issued as a pharmacy profit and mixed with financial savings from Dexcom.
CGM protection in case you have sort 2 diabetes
CGMs are usually coated for folks with sort 2 who’re taking a number of each day injections of insulin, use an insulin pump, or have had extreme hypoglycemia (low blood sugar).
One problem that would come up is a prior authorization, which implies your healthcare supplier or gadget firm has to get particular approval out of your medical health insurance firm to pay for the CGM.
If for any cause your insurance coverage supplier decides to disclaim protection for a CGM, know that you would be able to attraction and formally ask them to rethink their choice.
Medicare and Medicaid protection
In 2023, Medicare expanded protection of CGMs to incorporate folks with sort 2 diabetes who take any sort of insulin, in addition to sort 2s who should not taking insulin however have a historical past of hypoglycemia. Since Medicare is a nationwide program, this protection applies all through the US.
Medicaid protection varies from state to state. As of 2023, many states present Medicaid protection for folks with sort 2 diabetes.
All youngsters within the US underneath the age of 21 enrolled in any Medicaid program can entry a CGM via the Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Remedy (EPSDT) program.
Medicaid packages typically require a previous authorization from a healthcare supplier to obtain CGM protection. You might want to satisfy sure eligibility standards, similar to proving a diabetes analysis and exhibiting that you just repeatedly see an endocrinologist, as an illustration.
Business insurance coverage via an employer
CGM protection varies relying in your insurance coverage plan, so make sure to examine along with your particular person plan for particular info.
- Cigna covers CGM for sort 2 for anybody on a number of each day injections, long-acting basal insulin, or an insulin pump. Cigna’s protection consists of the Senseonics implantable sensor.
- Aetna covers CGM for sort 2 when on a number of each day injections or insulin pump, and never assembly glycemic targets OR experiencing hypoglycemia or hypoglycemia unawareness.
- UnitedHealthcare covers CGM for adults with sort 2 diabetes who use insulin.
- Blue Cross Blue Protect covers CGMs for adults with sort 2 who use insulin remedy; notice that protection varies by state. In California, as an illustration, CGMs could also be coated underneath pharmacy advantages (with a previous authorization) or via the medical profit at sure sturdy medical tools (DME) corporations.
- Kaiser Permanente covers CGM for adults with sort 2 diabetes who’re on a number of each day injections or use an insulin pump.
Protection via sturdy medical tools (DME) suppliers
Be aware that for sure insurance coverage, it’s possible you’ll be eligible for CGM via a sturdy medical tools supplier (similar to Byram Healthcare or Superior Diabetes Provide) via your insurance coverage, as CGMs are thought of sturdy medical tools and should not coated by the pharmacy profit. If that is so, ask your healthcare supplier to submit a referral for CGM to the DME supplier.
Different methods to acquire a CGM
With out insurance coverage, CGMs – together with the sensor, transmitter, and receiver – can value $1,000 to a number of thousand {dollars} per 12 months.
Usually you could find coupons for particular pharmacies on GoodRx.com to additional decrease the associated fee. Many individuals discover the Freestyle Libre CGMs to be essentially the most inexpensive choices, particularly when paying out of pocket.
The everyday out of pocket value for frequent CGMs are:
- FreeStyle Libre 2 and three – about $140 to $150 monthly
- Dexcom G6 and G7 – about $170 to $180 monthly
- Guardian Sensor 3 – about $180 for a 5 week provide
- Guardian 4 – about $280 for a 5 week provide
- Eversense E3 – about $1,500 to $1,600 per 12 months
In case you are nonetheless unable to entry CGM, there are a number of different choices. Your healthcare workforce can give you a skilled CGM to put on for a brief time period (often two weeks) as a method to discover ways to enhance your time in vary. Alternatively, you possibly can be part of a medical trial for diabetes drugs or know-how, lots of which provide free CGMs all through the examine.
Lastly, there are a lot of completely different affected person help packages (PAPs) and financial savings packages out there on-line.
Dexcom CGMs
Dexcom affords a free insurance coverage advantages examine to see in case you have CGM protection – discover extra info within the Dexcom Financial savings Middle.
You probably have a excessive copay or plan to pay out of pocket, Dexcom affords a financial savings program, which may help you save over 50% of the usual month-to-month money value.
Dexcom additionally affords a affected person help program to US residents who meet particular poverty line necessities and eligibility standards.
FreeStyle Libre CGMs
Should you qualify for the MyFreeStyle program, you possibly can entry a free sensor for a two week trial interval.
For folks with out CGM protection, Abbott’s Client Entry Program ensures you pay not more than $75 monthly. This program is for folks with industrial insurance coverage or cash-paying prospects and doesn’t apply to authorities insurance coverage packages like Medicare or Medicaid.
Guardian 3 and 4 sensors
Should you don’t have insurance coverage protection on your prescribed CGM, it’s possible you’ll be eligible for reductions from Medtronic. To qualify, you could use a number of each day injections or use an insulin pump, don’t have any insurance coverage protection for Medtronic CGM, and name Medtronic to substantiate your eligibility.
The low cost caps transmitter value as much as $180 per transmitter for a 12-month interval and $60 per field of sensors for every month.
Eversense implantable CGM
Senseonics affords a affected person help program for the Eversense implantable CGM, which has the potential to avoid wasting customers as much as $1,200 per 12 months.
Senseonics not too long ago expanded this system to incorporate extra commercially insured folks with diabetes. By means of this program, eligible folks pay solely $99 out of pocket for a limiteless variety of 6-month Eversense E3 techniques. This implies you’d pay a median of $16.50 monthly, amounting to lower than $200 out of pocket prices for a complete 12 months of CGM (excluding the prices of insertion and removing).
The underside line
Understanding insurance coverage protection on your CGM can really feel like a frightening process. Luckily, broad Medicare and industrial insurance coverage protection for CGM exists for folks with sort 1 diabetes. Medicare and lots of industrial insurance coverage additionally cowl CGMs for folks with sort 2 diabetes who use insulin.
Should you don’t have insurance coverage, CGM corporations provide affected person help packages and different low cost packages to make CGMs extra inexpensive.
“Basically, value shouldn’t be a barrier in case you have insurance coverage protection,” Taylor stated. “The most important problem is many occasions folks don’t perceive what advantages they qualify for.”
You probably have questions on CGM protection, seek the advice of your healthcare workforce to know your choices.
*Editor’s notice: This text is just not a complete listing of all insurance coverage. It was final up to date in Might 2024.
