Is other medical equipment covered by insurance?
Nebulizers, TENS units, compression garments, and other equipment your doctor prescribes for home. Here’s how each kind of plan usually handles it.
- Employer or MarketplaceCovered with conditions
Usually covered when your doctor prescribes it for a medical need.
More details
Plans cover used at home for a medical reason, often after the with coinsurance. Expensive items may need prior authorization or a contracted supplier. Items mainly for comfort or convenience usually aren’t covered.
Cost: Usually your deductible, then coinsurance.
- Original MedicareCovered with conditions
Yes, Part B covers durable medical equipment your doctor prescribes for use at home.
More details
Equipment must be medically necessary, last for years, and come from a Medicare-enrolled supplier. Since 2024, Medicare also covers compression garments for people with lymphedema; ordinary compression stockings for other reasons aren’t covered.
Cost: 20% after the Part B deductible.
- Medicare AdvantageCovered with conditions
Yes, Medicare Advantage plans must cover other medical equipment, but your plan sets the copay.
More details
Equipment must be medically necessary, last for years, and come from a Medicare-enrolled supplier. Since 2024, Medicare also covers compression garments for people with lymphedema; ordinary compression stockings for other reasons aren’t covered. plans must cover this too, but set their own copays and often require providers and prior authorization.
Cost: Your plan’s copay or coinsurance: check the Evidence of Coverage.
- MedicaidCovered with conditions
Yes, with your state’s approval rules.
More details
Medicaid covers medically necessary equipment; many items need .
What usually has to be true
- Use a supplier your plan contracts with (for Medicare, one enrolled in Medicare).
Good to know
- Renting can cost less than buying for short-term needs; Medicare rents many items before you own them.
- For a seat-lift chair, Medicare pays only for the motorized lift part, and only if you meet its criteria.
Related
- CPAP machine · CPAP or BiPAP for sleep apnea, plus masks and supplies.
- Wheelchair or scooter · Manual and power wheelchairs and scooters.
- Walker or cane · Walkers, rollators, canes, and crutches.
- Bathroom and home safety equipment · Shower chairs, grab bars, raised toilet seats, stair lifts, ramps, and medical alert systems.
Sources
Typical rules for 2026 plans, checked against these sources on October 20, 2026. Your plan’s own documents decide.
- 1What Marketplace plans cover
HealthCare.gov
Marketplace plans cover outpatient care, hospitalization, mental health care, prescription drugs, rehabilitation, laboratory services, preventive services, and other essential benefit categories.
- 2Durable medical equipment coverage
Medicare.gov
Part B covers qualifying DME including CPAP, walkers, wheelchairs, and scooters. After the deductible, patients generally pay 20% when assignment rules are met.
- 3Compare Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage
Medicare.gov
Medicare Advantage plans cover everything Original Medicare covers (except hospice, which Original Medicare continues to pay), usually use provider networks, often require referrals or prior authorization, and may offer extra benefits such as dental, vision, and hearing.
- 4Mandatory and optional Medicaid benefits
Medicaid.gov
States must cover mandatory benefits such as inpatient and outpatient hospital care, physician services, laboratory and X-ray services, home health, and nursing facility care; many other benefits, including adult dental, vision, and prescription drugs coverage details, are state options.
General information about how coverage usually works, not a decision about your plan. Your plan documents and insurer have the final word.