Does Original Medicare Cover Psychiatric Care by Video?
Yes. Original Medicare Part B covers psychiatric care by video, including a psychiatric evaluation, medication management, and therapy, and you can join the visit from home. After you meet the yearly Part B deductible ($283 in 2026), you generally pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount for each visit. If you have a Medigap supplement, it usually pays some or all of that 20%.
That is the short answer. The rest of this guide explains what is covered, what you will pay, how to tell whether you have Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan, and what to have ready if you are looking for care for yourself or for a parent.
What Original Medicare Covers
Part B covers outpatient mental health care from physicians and certain other Medicare-enrolled clinicians. That includes:
A psychiatric evaluation, the first visit where a physician reviews symptoms, history, medical conditions, and current medications
Medication management, the follow-up visits where treatment is adjusted and side effects are checked
Individual psychotherapy
A yearly depression screening, at no cost when the clinician accepts assignment
You do not need a referral from a primary care physician to see a psychiatric physician under Original Medicare. Many people still come through their primary care office, and that coordination helps.
Can the Visit Really Happen at Home?
Yes. For mental health care, Medicare allows telehealth visits in your home, anywhere in the country. Congress made that permanent for behavioral health in legislation passed at the end of 2020, so it does not depend on the temporary telehealth extensions that apply to other kinds of care.
One change is scheduled. Beginning January 1, 2028, Medicare is set to require an in-person visit within 6 months before a new patient's first mental health telehealth visit, and periodically after that. Congress has moved this date before. Until then, no in-person visit is required.
What You Pay in 2026
Part B deductible: $283 for the year. Once you have met it, it does not apply again until January.
Coinsurance: 20% of the Medicare-approved amount for each visit after the deductible. A video visit costs you the same as an in-person visit.
Medigap: most Medigap plans pay some or all of the 20%. The plans that also pay the Part B deductible (Plans C and F) are available only to people who became eligible for Medicare before 2020.
Other supplements: retiree plans and other coverage that pays after Medicare may also cover the 20%. Check with your plan.
Here is how the math works, using a made-up number. If Medicare's approved amount for a follow-up visit were $160 and you had already met your deductible, your share would be $32. A Medigap plan would usually pay that $32.
A practice that participates in Medicare accepts the Medicare-approved amount as full payment. You are billed only your deductible and coinsurance, and the practice files the claim for you.
Original Medicare or Medicare Advantage? Check Your Card
This is the question that matters most, and it is easy to get wrong.
Original Medicare: your card is the red, white, and blue Medicare card. You may also carry a separate Medigap or retiree card.
Medicare Advantage: you use a card from a private insurance company for your medical care, and the plan's name often includes "Advantage," "HMO," or "PPO."
Medicare Advantage plans cover mental health care too, but they have their own networks and rules. Your plan's member services number, on the back of the card, can point you to in-network psychiatric care.
One common mix-up in Virginia: the state and UVA retiree plan called Advantage 65 is a supplement to Original Medicare, not a Medicare Advantage plan, despite the name.
If you are not sure which coverage you have, call the practice you are considering before you book. We check coverage for you before scheduling.
If You Are Looking for Care for a Parent
Many of the people who call us are adult children. It helps to have a few things ready:
Which card your parent uses for medical care, and any supplement card
A current medication list, including over-the-counter medications and supplements
What has changed and when: sleep, appetite, mood, memory, energy, or interest in usual activities
The name of their primary care physician
Whether they can join a video visit on their own or will need help setting it up
Your parent will need to agree to the visit and be present for it. With your parent's permission, family members can join, and what you have noticed at home is often clinically useful.
How Welmivia Works With Original Medicare
Welmivia is a participating Medicare practice. We bill Original Medicare Part B directly for adults located in Virginia or Florida, and every visit is by video with Dr. Diaz, the same physician each time. After each visit, we send a note back to the referring clinician.
We are not able to see patients with Medicare Advantage or Medicaid.
For patients located in Florida, Dr. Diaz is not able to prescribe controlled medications, including stimulants or benzodiazepines, at this time.
To check your coverage or ask about a first visit, call 434-623-0003 or request a Medicare appointment. For a fuller breakdown of costs, see what Original Medicare covers for psychiatric care. Clinicians can refer through our referral page.
Welmivia does not advise on choosing a Medicare plan. For free, unbiased help, Virginians can contact VICAP, the Virginia Insurance Counseling and Assistance Program. Floridians can contact SHINE, Florida's State Health Insurance Assistance Program.
What to Take Away
Original Medicare Part B covers psychiatric evaluation, medication management, and therapy by video from home.
In 2026 you pay the $283 Part B deductible, then generally 20% per visit, which a Medigap plan often covers.
Check whether you have Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan before you book, because it changes where you can go.
Welmivia is not a crisis service. If you or someone you love is in danger, call 911. For a mental health crisis, call or text 988.
Sources
Medicare.gov. Mental health care (outpatient). https://www.medicare.gov/coverage/mental-health-care-outpatient
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. 2026 Medicare Parts A and B premiums and deductibles. November 2025.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Telehealth FAQ, updated February 26, 2026. https://www.cms.gov/files/document/telehealth-faq-updated-02-26-2026.pdf
This guide is general information, not medical or insurance advice for your situation. Medicare amounts change each year; figures here are for 2026.
