Fact Sheet: The Health Care Law and Preventive and Wellness Care

For people with insurance

All new health plans must cover important preventive and wellness benefits, such as immunizations and screenings for cancer or diabetes, with no deductibles or copayments. This requirement applies to new individual and group insurance plans.

For people with Medicare

Medicare will pay for an annual wellness visit and a personalized prevention plan that may include:

• An assessment of your health risks
  
  
• Your updated medical history
  
  
• A list of your current health care providers
  
  
• A list of your current prescription medications
  
  
• Your height, weight and blood pressure measurements
  
  
• A screening schedule for appropriate preventive services that you can follow over the next five to 10 years
  
  
• A list of your health risk factors along with treatment options
  Medicare will continue to cover a "Welcome to Medicare" physical exam for people who are new to the Medicare program. This free exam, which has no deductibles or copayments, is available during the first 12 months of enrollment into the Medicare program. (People new to Medicare cannot get both the "Welcome to Medicare" exam and the annual wellness visit during their first 12 months of enrollment; an annual wellness visit takes place each year after that.)
  

Although most Medicare Advantage plans offer Medicare-covered preventive care services with no deductibles or copayments, the new health care law does not require Medicare Advantage plans to offer preventive care services free of charge. If you have a Medicare Advantage plan, you should check with the plan to confirm what the deductibles and copayments are for preventive care services, if any.