Question: Is it too late to get free at-home COVID-19 tests through Medicare?
Answer: No. Medicare’s coverage of up to eight over-the-counter COVID-19 tests each calendar month for eligible beneficiaries will continue until the federal public health emergency ends, according to Medicare.gov, the official website for the federal health insurance for people 65 and older and certain younger patients. The COVID-19 emergency is expected to end May 11, the Biden administration has announced.
Once the emergency expires, “coverage for COVID-19 testing for Americans will change,” the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services said in a fact sheet issued Thursday. “Medicare beneficiaries who are enrolled in Part B will continue to have coverage without cost sharing for laboratory-conducted COVID-19 tests when ordered by a provider, but their current access to free over-the- counter COVID-19 tests will end, consistent with the statute on Medicare payment for OTC tests set by Congress,” it said.
For information about how to obtain tests in the meantime, see 808ne.ws/covidtest for details about eligibility and links to pharmacies participating in the Medicare COVID-19 OTC tests initiative.
Q: Regarding getting a new car title, is the form the same if the title is not lost, but is illegible because it’s been torn up? Also, can I apply online, or must I do this in person?
A: Yes, the application — form CS-L(MVR)10 — is the same; it’s to replace a vehicle title that has been lost, stolen, mutilated or defaced. You would surrender the defaced or mutilated title when you apply for the duplicate. No, you cannot submit this form online, but it doesn’t have to be submitted in person — you can mail it in, but in that case you must have the application notarized before mailing. Read more at 808ne.ws/dup.
Q: What if I want to donate the car, not sell it?
A: You’ll still need to provide a title, to transfer ownership and prove that you have the right to give away the vehicle. The process of obtaining a duplicate title would be the same as explained for previous readers, including in Monday’s column, 808ne.ws/214col.
Auwe
There are so many pickup trucks on the road with illegal tires and no mud flaps. Yesterday, one I was behind on Beretania Street fired a rock back at me and cracked my windshield. Also, to allow for the oversize, illegal tires, so many of these trucks are raised very high in the air. This endangers the occupants of any vehicle that might rear-end them, even at low speed. Somebody is going to get seriously injured or killed when the windshield of a car crashes into the bed of one of these trucks. We need the law to get these dangerous vehicles off the roads. — Reader
Mahalo
Friday, on my morning walk around Manoa, I fell off of a curb and hit my head. Seemingly within seconds, two amazing men, Frank Wood and Joe Gilmore, stopped to help. Frank, who had been an Army medic, put pressure on the head cut to stop the bleeding, and Joe called my husband. They waited with me until help arrived and walked me to our car. It’s wonderful that two strangers interrupted their morning commutes to assist and comfort a very grateful senior. As an added note, Frank predicted that I would need a couple of stitches, which was exactly on the money. — Mahalo, Karen H.
Mahalo
Thank you very much to Noah, Joseph and the officers of the Hawaii Kai police station who helped us get our stalled van out of the way of traffic on the corner of the Lunalilo Home Road and Wailua Street on Tuesday. Mahalo also to those who offered to help but couldn’t. This was an unexpected Valentine’s Day present. We hope your unselfish acts are rewarded. — Two senior citizens
Write to Kokua Line at Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., Suite 7-500, Honolulu, HI 96813; call 808-529-4773; or email kokualine@staradvertiser.com.
