Bloomberg Law
Feb. 16, 2021, 10:30 AM UTC

Medicare’s Addiction Coverage Gaps Prompt Calls for Change

Lydia Wheeler
Lydia Wheeler
Reporter
Tony Pugh
Tony Pugh
Reporter

Access to affordable care is a key to treating people with addiction, but adults 65 and older may have a hard time getting Medicare to cover the treatment they need.

Advocates for people with addiction say the federal program is falling short on covering some of the standard intermediary treatments recommended for substance use disorders and they’re hoping the new Congress will be open to making some legislative changes to fix a problem that’s been heightened by the opioid epidemic and exacerbated by Covid-19.

Over 1.2 million people 65 and over had a substance use disorder diagnosis in 2019, but ...

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