Does Health Insurance Cover Diabetes Supplies?

Are your glucometer and blood glucose test strips covered by your insurance provider? 

Living with diabetes can be extremely demanding. Not only do you have to constantly monitor your diet and blood glucose levels, but you often have to implement significant lifestyle changes that may be difficult to cope with.

As if that wasn’t enough, diabetes also comes with huge medical costs. The American Diabetes Association (ADA) estimates that the total cost of diabetes in the United States was $245 billion in 2012, $176 billion of which was linked to direct medical costs.¹

For someone living with diabetes, this means an average medical expenditure of more than twice that of a person who doesn’t have the condition. That’s right, the health costs are double for those with type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes.

The high costs lead many diabetes patients to ask: are diabetes medical supplies covered by insurance? Test strips, prescription drugs, glucometers, and diabetes education – do they need to be paid out of pocket or is your insurance company willing to pay for them?

The short answer is it depends. There are a number of factors like which insurer you have and what kind of policy you have that will determine whether or not and to what extent your diabetes supplies may be covered. It’s important to clarify with your insurer exactly what is covered in your plan and to consider the costs (like deductibles, premiums, and co-pays) associated with your plan.

Important Questions to Ask When Diagnosed with Diabetes

If you’ve recently been diagnosed with any type of diabetes, there are some important question you need to ask regarding your insurance. First, you need to determine if you are covered from the day of diagnosis. Is there a waiting period or are you immediately covered?

Next, you need to ask exactly which health care providers and pharmacies will be covered. Can you continue seeing your regular doctor or do you need to find a new doctor that is in your health insurer’s network? Are specialists like optometrists, podiatrists, endocrinologists, and others included? Will you be able to see a diabetes educator like a CDE (certified diabetes educator) and/or a dietician? Can you fill your prescriptions at any pharmacy, or is there a specific drugstore where you need to order your medications? 

Lastly, you need to inquire about different supplies and whether they are fully or partially covered by insurance. Are test strips covered? If so, how many per month? Is it enough to cover the number of daily blood glucose measurements your doctor recommends?

It’s important to ask all of these questions in order to better understand exactly what your insurance provider covers and what your immediate out-of-pocket costs will be.

The Good News, Your Dario May Be Covered

If you’re using Dario to manage your blood glucose levels, then we have some good news. DarioHealth has signed a number of strategic alliance agreements with partners across the U.S. who will be able to verify insurance coverage benefits, and if approved, will supply and bill your insurance for the Dario™ Blood Glucose Monitoring System and test strips – quickly and efficiently. 

That means you may not have to pay for the device and test strips or may be able to have the supplies reimbursed by your insurance provider. In order to check your availability for insurance coverage for your Dario, apply here.

Overall, it’s important to check directly with your insurance provider to get an understanding of exactly what is covered regarding your diabetes diagnosis. Even if your insurer doesn’t cover Dario supplies, our prices are often cheaper than insurance copays, so it may make sense to buy directly from our store. We have attractive subscription plans where you can buy blood glucose test strips for only 25 cents per test strip. Notwithstanding, it always pays to check out and see what your insurance policy covers.

So, what are you waiting for? Check to see if your insurance covers the Dario™ Blood Glucose Monitoring System and test strips today!