Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The American Samoa Medicaid State Agency — referred to as ASG Medicaid Office — has been given federal approval that allows continued covering of COVID-19 testing, vaccine and treatment at the Health Department and LBJ Medical Center through 2024.

In a brief statement, last week Friday, the Medicaid Office said it recently submitted a State Planning Amendment (SPA) to the U.S Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to allow the American Samoa Medicaid program to continue reimbursement for COVID vaccinations, testing and treatment through September 2024.

Coverage for these COVID services can only be reimbursed at the DoH’s Federally Qualified Health Clinics (FQHC), the LBJ hospital and for patients referred off-island with prior authorization from the Medicaid State Agency.

“COVID testing, vaccination and treatment were covered by Medicaid during the pandemic as authorized under a Disaster Relief State Planning Amendment but with the end of the [federal] Public Health Emergency declaration, these services would have ended in May,” Medicaid director Sandra King-Young explained.

“This approval allows Medicaid to continue covering COVID testing, vaccine administration and treatment at both LBJ and DOH community health clinics through September 2024,” she said.

For more information, please call Medicaid Office 684-699-4777.

On background information, Samoa News previously reported that the CDC announced that May 11 marks the end of the federal COVID-19 declaration. After this date, CDC’s authorizations to collect certain types of public health data will expire.

The federal health agency outlined new guidelines for collecting and sharing data, noting that vaccines, treatments and testing will remain available.

“CDC is shifting from an emergency response to incorporating COVID-19 activities into routine public health practice,” the agency said. CDC has provided specific details on its COVID-19 page online at (www.cdc.gov).