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Sentara Medicaid OTC Benefits 2027: Allowances, Phone and Dual Plans

By Modinul Islam Khan Updated November 1, 2026

Reviewed November 1, 2026. Sentara Community Plan, Sentara Health Plans’ Virginia Medicaid plan, doesn’t list a general OTC allowance or OTC catalog. Instead, its 2026 added benefits include two quarterly product allowances that work like one: up to $20 a quarter for feminine hygiene products and up to $30 a quarter for incontinence products for members who qualify. Unused dollars roll over within the year.

Quick answer: To use Sentara’s Medicaid product allowances, contact Sentara’s outreach team or call Member Services at 1-800-881-2166 (TTY 711), Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Over-the-counter medicines such as pain relievers or allergy pills are covered through your Medicaid pharmacy benefit when a provider prescribes them. If you also have Medicare, Sentara’s 2027 dual plans include a monthly flex card allowance for OTC items, groceries and utilities.

Does Sentara Medicaid have OTC benefits?

Not as a general allowance. Sentara’s Medicaid added-benefits page, its Member Handbook (effective January 1, 2026) and its 2026 Member Guide don’t describe an OTC card, catalog or vendor. The OTC allowance you may see on Sentara’s website, ordered through NationsBenefits, is listed under Sentara’s Medicare plans, not Medicaid.

What Sentara Community Plan does offer for everyday health products:

Sentara Medicaid benefit (2026)	Amount	Who qualifies and rules
Feminine hygiene products	“Up to $20 per quarter for products such as tampons, pads, wipes, and period panties”	Unused dollars roll over to the next quarter, but all expire at the end of the year
Adult incontinence products	“Up to $30 in products per quarter”	Members 18 and older with incontinence from a chronic physical or mental condition, once eligibility is confirmed; unused amounts roll over and expire at year end
Diapers	400 free generic diapers per pregnancy, sizes 0 to 2	Qualifying pregnant members; the handbook says “up to 400 per live birth”

Source: Sentara Health Plans Medicaid added benefits and 2026 Member Handbook. Sentara hasn’t published a 2027 Medicaid benefit list yet.

How to order Sentara Medicaid products

Sentara’s benefits page says to “contact our outreach team” to use these benefits; it doesn’t name an online store or catalog. The simplest route is to call Member Services at 1-800-881-2166 (TTY 711) and ask how to place an order for feminine hygiene or incontinence products. Have your member ID card ready. For incontinence products, Sentara confirms eligibility first.

Other Sentara Community Plan added benefits

Sentara lists more extras for Medicaid members. These aren’t OTC allowances, but several cover health products or everyday costs:

Adult vision: members 21 and up get one eye exam and $100 toward frames, lenses or contacts each year in network.
Healthy Food Grocery Card: $75 per quarter for pregnant members, ending 12 months after birth or miscarriage. It doesn’t roll over.
Healthy Member Incentives: “Up to $50 per year in gift card rewards” for doctor visits, screenings and vaccines.
Hearing aids: up to $2,000 every 12 months for members 21 and older.
Utility assistance: up to $250 a year.
Home-delivered meals: 56 meals after a hospital stay.
Asthma and COPD: a mattress cover and pillowcase every 2 years.
Free phone: an Assurance Wireless phone for members 18 and older.

Sentara’s page notes that some benefits, such as its diabetes prevention program, aren’t FAMIS benefits, so FAMIS members should ask which extras apply to them.

Does Sentara Medicaid cover over-the-counter medicine?

Yes, with a prescription. The DMAS Pharmacy Manual says “Virginia Medicaid covers certain FDA approved over-the-counter (OTC) drugs when used as therapeutic alternatives to more costly legend drugs,” and “MCOs are required to carry the same categories.” Covered categories include pain relievers, antacids, antihistamines, laxatives, vitamins and naloxone. Ask your doctor for a prescription and fill it at a Sentara network pharmacy, the same way you fill other prescriptions.

How Sentara compares with other Virginia Medicaid plans

If an OTC allowance matters to you, compare it with the other Cardinal Care plans. Humana Healthy Horizons in Virginia lists up to $65 a quarter per household for OTC products, and Aetna Better Health of Virginia lists $20 a month in CVS menstrual care supplies and $25 a month for new moms. Our Virginia Medicaid OTC benefits guide compares all five plans.

DMAS lets you change plans in the first 90 days after you join Cardinal Care Managed Care, then during your region’s yearly open enrollment. Call the Managed Care Helpline at 1-800-643-2273 (TTY 1-800-817-6608) or see how to change your Medicaid plan in Virginia.

Sentara dual plans with OTC benefits for 2027

If you have both Medicare and Virginia Medicaid, Sentara offers Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans (D-SNPs) with a monthly flex card allowance. Sentara’s 2027 Summaries of Benefits, covering January 1 to December 31, 2027, show:

Sentara D-SNP	2027 allowance	2026 allowance	Service area
Sentara Community Complete (HMO D-SNP)	$355 a month on a prepaid flex card for groceries, OTC products and qualified utilities	$400 a month	Listed Virginia counties and cities
Sentara Community Complete Select (HMO D-SNP)	$105 a month Essential Benefits Allowance for groceries, OTC products and utilities	$135 a month	All Virginia cities and counties

Source: Sentara 2026 and 2027 Summaries of Benefits. Unused amounts don’t roll over.

For Sentara Community Complete, the Summary of Benefits says “Members with chronic condition(s) that meet certain criteria may be eligible for this special supplemental benefit,” and “Unused amounts expire at the end of each month.” Check the plan’s Evidence of Coverage for the exact criteria. You can compare 2027 plans during Medicare Open Enrollment, October 15 to December 7, 2026, and people with Medicaid may be able to change at other times under Medicare’s special enrollment rules. For how other carriers’ cards work, see Humana OTC catalog and Aetna OTC benefits.

Sentara Health Plans name change

Sentara retired the Optima Health and Virginia Premier brands and moved its health plans to the Sentara Health Plans name by the end of 2023. Virginia Premier Medicaid members became Optima Health members on July 1, 2023, and new ID cards went out around January 1, 2024. Older materials may still use the Optima or Virginia Premier names.

Frequently asked questions

Does Sentara Community Plan have an OTC card?

No general OTC card is listed for Sentara Medicaid. Members can get up to $20 a quarter in feminine hygiene products, and qualifying adults up to $30 a quarter in incontinence products, by contacting Sentara.

How much is the Sentara Medicaid OTC allowance?

Sentara lists $20 a quarter for feminine hygiene and $30 a quarter for incontinence products in 2026. Both roll over within the year and expire at year end.

What is the Sentara Medicaid phone number?

Member Services is 1-800-881-2166 (TTY 711), Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The 24/7 Nurse Advice Line is 1-833-933-0487 (TTY 711).

Does Sentara Medicare have an OTC catalog?

Yes. Sentara’s Medicare plans list an OTC allowance through NationsBenefits, and its 2027 dual plans include a monthly flex card allowance. That benefit isn’t part of Sentara’s Medicaid plan.

Is Sentara the same as Optima Health?

Yes. Optima Health and Virginia Premier became Sentara Health Plans by the end of 2023.

For allowances in other states and plans, see our Medicaid OTC benefits guide, Humana Medicaid OTC benefits and the list of OTC card eligible items.

This article is general information. Medicare365 is not affiliated with or endorsed by Sentara Health Plans, DMAS, Medicare or any U.S. government agency. Benefits can change; check your member handbook or call the number on your member ID card.