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Covid Vaccine Tier for Mystery Shopping in California?

January 30, 2021 03:48PM
Ceasesmith, I just saw this article in the AARP bulletin regarding who pays for the vaccine....

[www.aarp.org]

You should not be charged anything. You can check with your county Public Health Dept to find if they have any locations in your county where they are not charging up front but according to this article if you do get charged you can get the charge reversed. At the very least if you cannot find a way to do that, perhaps during your travels for work as a mystery shopper you can arrange to get the vaccine in a county that does have vaccine sites or you can reimburse the doc what they would have gotten from the govt or their insurance carriers....around $20-30.


@ceasesmith wrote:

I must say, my Letters of Authorization for my mystery shops SAY it's essential service provider.

Just sayin'.

When I go into 50 stores in 3 different states, even wearing a mask, I am exposed to high risk.

Plus, I'm 74 years old.

It's moot for me, anyway -- I don't have health insurance, and the "local provider" is charging $150 for each shot for the vaccinations (yes, the vaccine is "free"; the provider can charge to cover overhead, expenses, etc.). So, since I don't have $300, I ain't gettin' no vaccine.
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January 30, 2021 06:04PM
When I took my parents, yes, the vaccine itself is free but they can charge to administer it. Hence they were taking everyone's insurance info. However, I could have sworn I read somewhere that if you didn't have insurance then they shouldn't "charge" you for administering it. Seems like a county or state-run site wouldn't charge.

Kim
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January 30, 2021 07:13PM
Indeed. When I told my friend in NM that it would cost me $150 per shot, he called me stupid and said I didn't know what I was talking about. I told him to go to the CDC website, which clearly states that the vaccine is free, but locations can charge to cover overhead, etc. He called me back and didn't apologize for calling me names (he's a MAN! ), but admitted I was right.

We only have 2,000 people in our county; ergo, no county health organization (used to have one, but it closed when population dropped, maybe 15 years ago). The only local health provider is a hospital, and they are charging $150 per shot.
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January 30, 2021 09:18PM
When my daughter needed a covid test early on most of the sites run by small organizations were charging upfront $150. We drove far to get a test elsewhere. The large sites that were set up ask for your insurance because they can get reimbursed if you have insurance. If you do not have insurance they get reimbursed by a government fund mentioned in the article here...[www.aarp.org] /conditions-treatments/info-2021/covid-vaccine-costs.html. My son got charged $200 by his insurance just for calling the office to see if they thought he needed to come in for a test. They said no and he never went in. After I told him they cannot charge he called them back and they said they made a mistake. But many people do not challenge the charges and the insurance company gets away with it if it was not truly a mistake.
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February 02, 2021 01:38PM
Hey Cease, can you look into this?


Not that I think you HAVE to get a vaccine, but I think that if anyone who wants one SHOULD be able to get one regardless of their income status, etc. I don't think that's right that someone can't get a free vaccine because they have to pay for it to be administered. That is dumb.

From here: [www.nebraskamed.com]


Will it cost money to get the COVID-19 vaccine?

No, both doses of the vaccines are free. Vaccine providers are allowed to charge an administration fee for giving the shot to someone. This fee will be paid by your insurance provider. If you do not have health insurance, Medicare will cover the fee.

Kim
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February 04, 2021 12:09AM
That's confusing. "If you do not have health insurance, Medicare will cover the fee" -- if you have Medicare, then you have insurance.

I have Medicare, but it doesn't cover this.

I did apply for state coverage, Medicaid. I was told my share of cost would be $800 a month. Every month.

So I can either have a place to live, OR insurance. Not both on a SS income of $1100 a month.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/04/2021 12:10AM by ceasesmith.
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