Everyday Care
Does Medicare Cover an Annual Physical?
No — Medicare does not pay for a traditional head-to-toe annual physical. It covers two different visits instead: a one-time "Welcome to Medicare" visit in your first 12 months of Part B, then a yearly Annual Wellness Visit.
What Original Medicare covers
Two specific visits, and it pays for both in full when your provider accepts assignment:
The "Welcome to Medicare" visit — a one-time preventive visit during your first 12 months of Part B. It reviews your medical and family history, checks height, weight, blood pressure, and vision, screens for depression and safety risks, and ends with a written checklist of the preventive services you're due for.
The Annual Wellness Visit — every 12 months once you've had Part B for a year. You fill out a health risk assessment, and the provider updates your prevention plan, reviews your medications, and checks for signs of cognitive impairment.
What it does not cover
The traditional head-to-toe annual physical — the hands-on exam with routine lab panels that employer insurance typically covered. That is genuinely not a Medicare benefit, and a provider who performs one can bill you for it. The wellness visit is mostly a conversation and a plan, not a physical exam. Knowing that ahead of time prevents one of the most common billing surprises in Medicare.
The billing trap to know about
If, during a wellness visit, your doctor investigates a new symptom, manages an existing condition, or orders diagnostic tests, that extra care is billed as regular Part B services — the $283 annual deductible and 20% coinsurance can apply to that portion even though the visit itself cost nothing. It isn't wrongdoing; it's how the rules work. When you schedule, say the words "Annual Wellness Visit," and ask during the visit whether anything being added is billable.
Separately, Medicare covers many preventive screenings — mammograms, colonoscopies, vaccines, and others — most at no cost when the provider accepts assignment. Some Medicare Advantage plans add a routine annual physical as an extra benefit.
Who to ask
Ask your doctor's office which visit you're being scheduled for and exactly what's included — that one question prevents most surprise bills. Talk to a licensed advisor if you're new to Medicare and want your first-year visits, screenings, and deadlines laid out in order.