Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, the state’s largest insurer, said Thursday that policy holders who are diagnosed with COVID-19 will not be charged out-of-pocket costs for their treatment.

Blue Cross said in a news release that the waiver of co-pays, co-insurance and deductibles for COVID-19 care applies to people on the state employee health plan, people who are fully insured, and those who have a Blue Cross NC Medicare plan.

The waivers are in place at least through June 1. The policy applies to both in-network and out-of-network hospitals.

“This is a public health emergency that is requiring everyone in the health care community to do their part, and we’ll continue to respond and determine how to best serve our members in the face of COVID-19,” Gerald Petkau, Blue Cross NC chief operating officer and interim CEO, said in a statement.

Blue Cross NC is the state employee health plan’s third-party administrator. About 562,000 people are on state insurance plans that Blue Cross NC administers, according to the state Treasurer’s Office.

Blue Cross NC previously announced it is covering the cost of coronavirus testing and medical visits to screen for the virus, The News & Observer reported.

A number of state employees are among those infected with the coronavirus.

A state Department of Revenue worker has tested positive, The N&O reported.

State Treasurer Dale Folwell has COVID-19, as do two members of his staff.

This story was originally published April 2, 2020 at 3:55 PM with the headline "Blue Cross NC waives out-of-pocket costs for COVID-19 care for members, state workers."