What Medicare covers for screening
Medicare.gov's list of preventive services includes vaccines, counseling and 21 screenings. Here is each screening with who qualifies, how often it is covered and what you pay, taken from its Medicare.gov page, next to what the USPSTF recommends. (Medicare.gov) Coverage and recommendation are not the same thing: Medicare sometimes pays for more than the USPSTF recommends, and the other way round.
The list
Costs are for Original Medicare. "Accepts assignment" means your provider agrees to Medicare's approved amount; if you have a Medicare Advantage plan, check its costs with the plan.
| Screening | Who Medicare covers | How often | You pay | USPSTF |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abdominal aortic aneurysm | At risk: a family history of AAA, or a man 65 to 75 who has smoked at least 100 cigarettes; needs a referral (Medicare.gov) | Once in your lifetime | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | Men 65 to 75 who have ever smoked, once (B) (USPSTF, 2019) |
| Alcohol misuse | Adults who drink but do not meet the criteria for alcohol dependence; up to 4 brief counseling sessions a year if needed (Medicare.gov) | Once a year | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | Adults 18 and older (B) (USPSTF, 2018) |
| Bone density | Certain conditions, such as estrogen deficiency with risk of osteoporosis, X-rays suggesting bone loss, steroid treatment, or monitoring osteoporosis treatment (Medicare.gov) | Every 24 months, or more often if medically necessary | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | Women 65 and older, and younger postmenopausal women at increased risk (B) (USPSTF, 2025) |
| Cervical and vaginal (Pap, HPV, pelvic exam) | Women; includes a clinical breast exam with the pelvic exam (Medicare.gov) | Every 24 months in most cases; every 12 months at high risk; HPV test with the Pap every 5 years at 30 to 65 | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | 21 to 65 (A); stop after 65 with adequate prior screening (USPSTF, 2018) |
| Cholesterol and lipids (cardiovascular screening) | Everyone with Part B (Medicare.gov) | Every 5 years | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | No separate grade for a cholesterol test; cholesterol feeds the heart risk estimate for statins at 40 to 75 (USPSTF, 2022) |
| Colonoscopy | No minimum age; also covered as follow-up after a positive stool or blood test (Medicare.gov) | Every 120 months at average risk (48 months after a flexible sigmoidoscopy); every 24 months at high risk | Nothing for the screening; 15% coinsurance if a polyp is removed | 45 to 75 (A at 50, B at 45), every 10 years (USPSTF, 2021) |
| Stool test (FOBT or FIT) | 45 and older, with a referral (Medicare.gov) | Every 12 months | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | Yearly, as one colorectal option (USPSTF, 2021) |
| Stool DNA test | 45 to 85, no symptoms, average risk (Medicare.gov) | Every 3 years | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | Every 1 to 3 years, as one colorectal option (USPSTF, 2021) |
| Blood-based colorectal test | 45 to 85, no symptoms, average risk (Medicare.gov) | Every 3 years | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | Not among the USPSTF 2021 colorectal test options (USPSTF, 2021) |
| CT colonography | 45 and older, ordered by your clinician (Medicare.gov) | Every 60 months at average risk (48 months after a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy); every 24 months at high risk | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | Every 5 years, as one colorectal option (USPSTF, 2021) |
| Flexible sigmoidoscopy | 45 and older (Medicare.gov) | 48 months after a previous sigmoidoscopy or CT colonography; 120 months after a colonoscopy if not at high risk | Nothing for the screening; 15% coinsurance if a growth is removed | Every 5 years, as one colorectal option (USPSTF, 2021) |
| Depression | Everyone with Part B, in a primary care setting (Medicare.gov) | Once a year | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | All adults (B) (USPSTF, 2023) |
| Diabetes | One risk factor such as high blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol, obesity or past high blood sugar; or two such as being 65 or older, overweight, or a family history (Medicare.gov) | Up to 2 a year | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | 35 to 70 with overweight or obesity (B) (USPSTF, 2021) |
| Glaucoma | High risk: diabetes, a family history, African American and 50 or older, or Hispanic and 65 or older (Medicare.gov) | Every 12 months | 20% after the Part B deductible | Evidence insufficient for adults 40 and older (I) (USPSTF, 2022) |
| Hepatitis B | High risk, or pregnant; ordered by your clinician (Medicare.gov) | Yearly if at continued high risk and not vaccinated; set times in pregnancy | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | People at increased risk (B) (USPSTF, 2020) |
| Hepatitis C | High risk (injection drug use, a transfusion before 1992), or born 1945 to 1965 (Medicare.gov) | Once in your lifetime; yearly with continued injection drug use | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | All adults 18 to 79, once (B) (USPSTF, 2020) |
| HIV | 15 to 65, or younger or older at increased risk (Medicare.gov) | Once a year; up to 3 times in pregnancy | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | 15 to 65 at least once (A) (USPSTF, 2019) |
| Lung cancer (low-dose CT) | 50 to 77, no symptoms, 20 pack-years, smoke now or quit within 15 years, with an order and a shared decision visit before the first scan (Medicare.gov) | Once a year | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | 50 to 80 with the same smoking history (B) (USPSTF, 2021) |
| Mammogram | Women 40 and older; one baseline mammogram at 35 to 39 (Medicare.gov) | Every 12 months | Nothing for screening; 20% after the deductible for a diagnostic mammogram | Every 2 years at 40 to 74 (B) (USPSTF, 2024) |
| Prostate (PSA, rectal exam) | Men over 50 (Medicare.gov) | Every 12 months | Nothing for the PSA test; 20% after the deductible for a rectal exam | Your decision at 55 to 69 (C); not recommended from 70 (D) (USPSTF, 2018) |
| Sexually transmitted infections | Pregnant or at increased risk; chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis and hepatitis B; up to 2 counseling sessions a year (Medicare.gov) | Once every 12 months, or at set times in pregnancy | Nothing if your provider accepts assignment | Chlamydia and gonorrhea in sexually active women 24 or younger, or older at increased risk (B) (USPSTF, 2021) |
Where coverage and advice differ
- Mammograms: covered every 12 months from 40; the USPSTF recommends every 2 years from 40 to 74. (Medicare.gov)(USPSTF, 2024)
- PSA test: covered every 12 months for men over 50; the USPSTF calls it a personal decision at 55 to 69 and recommends against it from 70. (Medicare.gov)(USPSTF, 2018)
- Lung CT: covered to 77; the USPSTF recommends it to 80. (Medicare.gov)(USPSTF, 2021)
- Hepatitis C: covered once for people born 1945 to 1965 or at high risk; the USPSTF recommends a test once for all adults 18 to 79. (Medicare.gov)(USPSTF, 2020)
- Cervical: covered every 24 months in most cases, with no upper age listed; the USPSTF recommends stopping after 65 with adequate prior screening. (Medicare.gov)(USPSTF, 2018)
- Bone density: covered for listed medical conditions; the USPSTF recommends it for all women 65 and older. (Medicare.gov)(USPSTF, 2025) Ask your doctor whether you qualify.
The visits that tie it together
The Welcome to Medicare preventive visit, within your first 12 months of Part B, and the Yearly Wellness visit after it, review your health history and give you a written plan, like a checklist, of the screenings and other preventive services you need. (Medicare.gov)(Medicare.gov) See Medicare Annual Wellness Visit vs a physical and screenings after 65.
Medicare.gov advises asking your provider what a test will cost before you get it, because a provider may recommend services Medicare does not cover or offers less often. (Medicare.gov) This page is educational only, not medical advice or coverage advice; talk to your doctor, and check your plan for your own costs.
Questions people ask
Are Medicare screenings free?
Most are: Medicare.gov lists you paying nothing for most screenings if your provider accepts assignment. Exceptions include glaucoma screening and the rectal exam for prostate screening (20% after the Part B deductible), and removal of a polyp during a screening colonoscopy (15% coinsurance). (Medicare.gov) (Medicare.gov) (Medicare.gov) (Medicare.gov)
Does Medicare cover a colonoscopy after 75?
Medicare.gov sets no minimum age for screening colonoscopy and lists no upper age; it is covered every 10 years at average risk. The USPSTF recommends screening to 75 and selective screening from 76 to 85, so ask whether it still makes sense for you. (Medicare.gov) (USPSTF, 2021)
Why does Medicare cover a yearly mammogram when the USPSTF says every 2 years?
Medicare coverage and USPSTF advice are separate. Medicare covers a screening mammogram every 12 months from 40; the USPSTF recommends every 2 years from 40 to 74. Coverage tells you what is paid for, not what you need. (Medicare.gov) (USPSTF, 2024)
Where do these screenings fit in the yearly visit?
The one-time Welcome to Medicare preventive visit and the Yearly Wellness visit give you a written plan, like a checklist, of the screenings and other preventive services you need. The screenings themselves are covered separately, as listed here. (Medicare.gov) (Medicare.gov)