Preventive Services · Screenings, Shots & Wellness Visits
Plain English. Five calm steps. No pressure.
Medicare covers dozens of screenings, shots and check-ins to help you stay healthy and catch problems early — many at no cost to you. Yet many people never use them. Here's what's covered, how often, and how to make your own list for your doctor.
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Your Prevention Path
Read them in order, or jump straight to what you need.
When preventive care costs $0 — and when it doesn't.
Welcome to Medicare and the yearly wellness visit.
What's covered, and how often.
Vaccines and support to help you stay well.
Print your list and avoid surprise bills.
Step 1 How It Works
Prevention Is Built Into Part B
For most preventive services, you pay nothing — no Part B deductible and no 20% coinsurance — as long as your doctor or other provider accepts assignment, meaning they agree to Medicare's approved amount as full payment.
Covered by Part B. Use any provider that accepts Medicare and accepts assignment to pay $0 for most preventive services.
Ask: "Do you accept assignment?"Plans must cover the same preventive services. Most cost $0 when you use an in-network provider.
Stay in networkWhen "free" can turn into a bill: if your doctor finds a problem and treats it, orders extra tests, or talks with you about a health issue during a preventive visit, that part may be billed as regular care — with your deductible and 20% coinsurance. It's always fine to ask, "Will anything today not be covered as preventive?"
Step 2 Your Yearly Visits
Your Prevention Plan Starts Here
A wellness visit isn't a physical. Original Medicare doesn't cover a routine head-to-toe physical exam or routine lab work you didn't need. When you book, ask for your "Annual Wellness Visit" by name. (Some Medicare Advantage plans do cover a yearly physical — check your plan.)
Bring to your visit:
Also at no cost: if you want, you can use your yearly wellness visit to talk about advance care planning — your wishes for future care if you can't speak for yourself.
Step 3 Screenings
Catch Problems Early
Tick any you'd like to ask your doctor about. When you're done, print your personal list in Step 5. Some screenings are only covered if you have certain risk factors — your doctor can tell you which apply to you.
| Ask | Screening | How often Medicare covers it |
|---|---|---|
| Cancer | ||
| Breast cancer (mammogram) | Once every 12 months | |
| Colorectal cancer | Colonoscopy every 10 years (every 2 if high risk); stool tests every 1–3 years; other options available | |
| Lung cancer (low-dose CT) | Once a year, ages 50–77, if you have a qualifying smoking history | |
| Prostate cancer (PSA blood test) | Once every 12 months, men 50 and older | |
| Cervical & vaginal cancer | Once every 24 months (every 12 if high risk) | |
| Heart & blood vessels | ||
| Heart disease blood tests (cholesterol) | Once every 5 years | |
| Abdominal aortic aneurysm (ultrasound) | Once, with a referral, if you're at risk | |
| Other conditions | ||
| Diabetes | Up to 2 times a year, if you're at risk | |
| Bone density (osteoporosis) | Once every 24 months if you meet criteria, more often if medically needed | |
| Glaucoma | Once every 12 months, if you're at high risk | |
| Depression | Once every 12 months, in a primary care setting | |
| Hepatitis B & Hepatitis C | Once, or yearly if you're at continued high risk | |
| HIV | Once every 12 months for ages 15–65, and others at increased risk | |
| Alcohol misuse | Once every 12 months, plus up to 4 brief counseling sessions if needed | |
Coverage rules and frequencies from Medicare.gov's preventive services list. Some screenings require a doctor's order and certain risk factors. Your doctor decides which are right for you.
About screening colonoscopies: the screening itself is $0. But if your doctor removes a polyp during it, you may owe a small coinsurance — 10% in 2027, dropping to $0 in 2030. A follow-up colonoscopy after a positive stool test is also covered as a screening.
Step 4 Shots & Counseling
Protection and Support
Some vaccines are covered by Part B and others by Part D drug plans — but most recommended adult vaccines cost $0 either way.
| Ask | Service | How it's covered |
|---|---|---|
| Vaccines | ||
| Flu shot | Part B · once per flu season · $0 | |
| Pneumonia (pneumococcal) shots | Part B · as recommended · $0 | |
| COVID-19 vaccine | Part B · as recommended · $0 | |
| Hepatitis B shots | Part B · if you're at medium or high risk · $0 | |
| Shingles vaccine | Part D · $0 for recommended adult vaccines | |
| RSV vaccine | Part D · $0 for recommended adult vaccines | |
| Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, whooping cough) | Part D · $0 for recommended adult vaccines | |
| Counseling & programs | ||
| Heart health visit (cardiovascular behavioral therapy) | One visit a year with your primary care doctor | |
| Quit smoking & tobacco counseling | Up to 8 sessions in a 12-month period | |
| Weight-loss counseling | If your BMI is 30 or more, in a primary care setting | |
| Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program | Once in your lifetime, if you meet criteria | |
| Medical nutrition therapy | If you have diabetes or kidney disease, with a referral | |
Getting a Part D vaccine? Many pharmacies can give shingles, RSV and Tdap vaccines and bill your drug plan directly. Call ahead to confirm they're in your plan's network. Read the Part D guide →
Step 5 Make the Most of It
Your Personal Prevention List
You haven't ticked any services yet.
Your list stays on your own device and is never sent to us.
Tips to avoid surprise bills:
Not sure when you're due? Your secure account at Medicare.gov shows which preventive services you're eligible for and when you last had them. You can also call 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY 1-877-486-2048).
The part of Medicare that covers preventive care. Part B guide →
Preventive care, plus extras some plans add. Medicare Advantage guide →
Reviewing your coverage for next year? Open Enrollment guide →
No pressure · No sales calls · Your health, your pace
Common Questions
Many are. You pay nothing for most preventive services if your provider accepts assignment (or is in your Medicare Advantage plan's network). But if your doctor treats a problem or orders extra tests during the same visit, you may owe your deductible and coinsurance for that part.
Original Medicare doesn't cover a routine physical exam. It covers a one-time "Welcome to Medicare" preventive visit and a yearly Annual Wellness Visit, which focus on planning your preventive care. Some Medicare Advantage plans cover a yearly physical as an extra benefit.
The "Welcome to Medicare" visit is available within the first 12 months you have Part B. After you've had Part B for more than 12 months, you can get a yearly wellness visit once every 12 months.
Yes. Flu, pneumonia, COVID-19 and (for those at risk) Hepatitis B shots are covered by Part B. Shingles, RSV, Tdap and other recommended adult vaccines are covered by Part D drug plans, generally at $0.
Yes. Medicare Advantage plans must cover all the preventive services Original Medicare covers, generally at no cost when you use an in-network provider.
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