What Stores Accept OTC Cards? 2027 Store List by Plan and Online

Reviewed October 28, 2026. Most OTC cards from Medicare Advantage and Medicaid plans are accepted at large chains such as Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Dollar General and Kroger-family grocery stores, plus thousands of local pharmacies and grocers. But no store takes every card. Which stores accept your OTC card depends on your plan and the card network behind it, so the store finder in your plan’s app or member website is the only list that’s final for you.

Quick answer: Look at the back of your card or your plan’s member site to find its network, then use that network’s store finder. UnitedHealthcare says its UCard works at “over 70,000 participating stores nationwide,” including Walmart, Walgreens, Dollar General and Target. Aetna’s 2027 Extra Benefits Card works at participating stores including CVS. Humana members find stores in MyHumana. Online, Amazon, Walmart.com and Walgreens.com accept some OTC cards. At the register, the card pays only for items your plan covers.

What stores accept OTC cards: chains named by plans and card networks

These are the chains that carriers, card networks or the retailers themselves name on their official pages. Being on this list doesn’t guarantee that a particular store near you takes your card.

Rite Aid is no longer an option. Rite Aid says that after its bankruptcy “over 2,000 stores shut down” and “the stores are not coming back.”

Why your card works at some stores and not others

Most plan OTC cards run on one of a few benefit networks. A store has to be signed up with that network, and its registers have to recognize which products your plan covers.

• InComm OTC Network: used by many plans, including Kaiser Permanente’s Healthy Extras card for 2026. InComm says members can shop “in-store at over 74,000 retail locations” and find stores in the My Benefits Center portal or app.
• Healthy Benefits+ (Solutran/Optum): Wellcare’s Spendables card points members to the Healthy Benefits+ app and store finder.
• NationsBenefits: used by Anthem and Wellpoint plans. Its FAQ tells members to “select ‘credit’ at check out” and lists participating stores at MyBenefits.NationsBenefits.com.
• Plan’s own card: UnitedHealthcare’s UCard, Humana’s Spending Account Card and Aetna’s Extra Benefits Card each have their own store finder.

CMS’s 2027 Medicare Advantage rule adds a federal requirement: supplemental benefit debit cards must be “electronically linked to plan-covered items and services through a real-time identification mechanism” and limited to the plan year. That’s why the register checks each item and why 2027 balances won’t carry into 2028.

Where each plan says you can use its card (2026 and 2027)

For plan-specific store lists, see where to use your UnitedHealthcare OTC card, Humana Spending Account Card stores, Aetna OTC benefits, Wellcare Spendables, HealthSpring flex card and Wellpoint OTC benefits.

Store-by-store guides

• Walmart OTC card guide
• Walgreens OTC benefits
• CVS OTC benefits
• Does Target accept OTC cards?
• Does Amazon accept OTC cards?
• Does Costco take OTC cards?

Can you use an OTC card online?

Yes, with some cards and some sites:

• Amazon: accepts the “OTC Network card” and “OTC Benefits card.” Eligible items show an “OTC Benefits card eligible” badge, including in Amazon Fresh.
• Walmart.com: covered items show a “Benefit programs eligible” badge, and Walmart says “your card will be applied to the items that are eligible.” Walmart launched online acceptance in May 2025, starting with NationsBenefits cards. Anthem says its NationsBenefits card isn’t accepted on Walmart.com, so acceptance can depend on the plan. Check with yours.
• Walgreens.com: Walgreens says “your OTC benefit card can be used online and in-store.”
• CVS.com: Aetna members shop at CVS.com/Aetna; Kaiser’s only online option is CVS Health.
• Plan catalogs: many plans also let you order from an OTC catalog online, by phone or by mail.

How to use an OTC card at checkout

1. Check your balance first in your plan’s app or website. Our OTC balance guide lists the sign-in pages for each plan.
2. Shop for items on your plan’s list. The list of OTC-eligible items shows common categories.
3. Pay with the OTC card first. The register approves only plan-covered items; if the card asks, choose “credit.”
4. Pay for anything else, or any amount over your balance, with another payment method. Walgreens describes it this way: “add your OTC benefit card to pay, and we’ll sort the qualifying items,” then “add another payment method.”
5. Keep your receipt and check that the purchase posted to your balance.

Can you buy groceries with your OTC card?

Only if your plan includes a food benefit and you qualify. For 2027, UnitedHealthcare says “verification of a qualifying chronic condition and more complex health needs will be required” to spend OTC credit on healthy food and utilities. Aetna’s 2027 Extra Supports Wallet for healthy foods, personal care, transportation and utilities is for members with a qualifying chronic condition. Devoted’s Food & Home Card is “available only to chronically ill members.” Read Medicare Advantage plans with OTC benefits to compare 2027 plans during Open Enrollment, October 15 to December 7, 2026.

Medicaid OTC benefits work differently. Many Medicaid plans use catalog ordering rather than a store card. See Medicaid OTC benefits.

Frequently asked questions

What stores accept OTC cards?

Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, Dollar General and Kroger-family stores are the chains plans name most often, followed by Publix, Albertsons and Target (UnitedHealthcare UCard only). Your plan’s store finder has the final list.

Does Walmart accept OTC cards?

Many OTC cards work at Walmart stores, including UnitedHealthcare’s UCard and Wellcare’s Spendables card. Walmart.com accepts some cards, but Anthem says its card isn’t accepted there.

Does Dollar General take OTC cards?

UnitedHealthcare and Wellcare both name Dollar General as a participating store.

Can I use my OTC card at any pharmacy?

No. The pharmacy must participate in your card’s network. Devoted, for example, limits OTC purchases to standalone CVS, Navarro and Longs Drugs stores.

Why was my OTC card declined?

Common reasons are an item your plan doesn’t cover, a store that isn’t in your card’s network, a zero balance or an inactive card. Check your balance and the store finder, then call the number on the back of your card.

Do OTC card balances roll over?

It depends on the plan, but under CMS’s 2027 rule, card funds are limited to the plan year, so money doesn’t carry into the next year.

This article is general information. Medicare365 is not affiliated with or endorsed by any insurance carrier, retailer or U.S. government agency. Benefits vary by plan and county; check your plan’s Evidence of Coverage or call the number on your member ID card.

Sources

• UnitedHealthcare: UCard
• UnitedHealthcare: OTC, food and utilities benefits
• Aetna: 2027 Medicare Advantage plans
• Aetna: What is the Extra Benefits Card?
• Humana: Spending Account Card
• Humana: OTC benefits
• Wellcare: Spendables
• HealthSpring: Extra benefits
• Anthem: Medicare OTC benefits
• NationsBenefits: Wellpoint FAQ
• Devoted Health: OTC benefit
• Devoted Health: Food & Home Card
• Kaiser Permanente: OTC benefit video transcript (2026)
• InComm: OTC supplemental benefit
• Amazon: OTC benefits
• Walmart: Shop with your OTC benefit card
• Walmart: Supplemental benefits online (May 28, 2025)
• Walgreens: Shop with your OTC benefit
• Rite Aid: What happened
• CMS: Contract Year 2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D final rule