For some, Medicare isn't covering the updated Covid vaccine yet [View all]

Source: NBC News

Sept. 5, 2025, 3:56 PM EDT


Some older Americans on Medicare are facing an unexpected problem: The updated Covid shots — approved last month by the Food and Drug Administration for all adults 65 and up — aren’t being covered, forcing them to decide whether to pay out of pocket.

Allison Engel, 74, said she visited her CVS in Pasadena, California, on Tuesday, where she was told the shot would cost $225 out of pocket. “They typed everything in, and handed me a rejection letter,” Engel said. “They told me it wasn’t in the Medicare system yet and I should come back in two weeks.” Engel didn’t want to wait, so she paid out of pocket, and hopes Medicare will reimburse her.

Brant Mittler, 78, of San Antonio, said he and his wife stopped by their CVS pharmacy on Monday where they ran into the same issue. “The pharmacist tells my wife, ‘We’ve had Medicare patients coming in all day, and everybody’s upset because we can’t give it,’” he said. Mittler said they got their Covid shots Thursday after the pharmacist said Medicare had updated the system there.

Their experiences are at odds with remarks from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who told a Senate committee on Thursday that most Americans are going to be able to get a Covid shot from their pharmacy for free. As HHS secretary, Kennedy oversees Medicare.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/-medicare-isnt-covering-updated-covid-shots-yet-rcna229338