To Fight Zika, Texas Medicaid Will Pay for Mosquito Repellent
With federal funding to fight Zika stuck in Congress, and amid news that mosquito-to-human transmission of the virus has reached the continental United States, Texas officials announced on Wednesday they would allow Medicaid to pay for mosquito repellent for women, in the hopes of preventing the disease.
The decision comes two months after the Obama administration first told states they could allow Medicaid, the federal-state health insurance program for the poor and disabled, to pay for Zika prevention services, including mosquito repellent and family planning.
Women who are pregnant or are between the ages of 10 and 45 are eligible so long as a doctor prescribes the mosquito repellent and the patient picks it up at a pharmacy. State officials say women should not schedule an office visit to receive mosquito repellent unless it is medically necessary.
"The best way to protect yourself from Zika is by avoiding mosquito bites," said Charles Smith, executive commissioner of the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, in a statement. "There is currently no vaccine to prevent the disease or drug to treat it, making it essential that people use mosquito repellent to protect women and unborn babies."
Read more: https://www.texastribune.org/2016/08/03/zika-texas-medicaid-pay-mosquito-repellent/
