Cognitive Screening at the Annual Wellness Visit — What CMS Requires and How AI Can Help

CMS requires that every Medicare Annual Wellness Visit include detection of cognitive impairment — but does not mandate a specific screening tool, leaving the choice of method to the physician’s clinical judgment. GIA® by Scienza Health completes cognitive and behavioral screening from a 40-second natural conversation, with results delivered into the physician’s EHR before the patient sits down.

What CMS Requires at the AWV

The Medicare Annual Wellness Visit (AWV) is a preventive visit covered under Medicare Part B for eligible beneficiaries. CMS requires the AWV to include detection of any cognitive impairment the beneficiary may have. CMS does not approve or mandate specific screening tools — physicians may use any validated assessment method, including direct observation, patient history, or standardized cognitive screening instruments.

CMS does not mandate a specific cognitive screening tool at the AWV. Physicians may use any validated assessment method that supports clinical judgment.

• AWV must include cognitive impairment detection
• No specific tool is required by CMS
• Physician clinical judgment governs tool selection
• Results must be documented in the medical record
• Referral pathways should be established for positive findings

The Challenge With Traditional AWV Cognitive Screening

Standard cognitive screening tools like the Mini-Cog, SLUMS, and MoCA are validated and widely used — but they take 10 to 30 minutes to administer, require trained staff, and assess one condition at a time. In a primary care setting where the average face time with a patient is under 10 minutes, consistent cognitive screening at every AWV is difficult to achieve.

• 10 to 30 minutes per assessment
• Requires trained staff to administer
• Single condition at a time
• Often skipped when time is limited
• Results require manual documentation
• No longitudinal tracking between visits

How GIA® Supports AWV Cognitive Screening

GIA® completes cognitive and behavioral screening from a 40-second natural conversation — before or during the AWV. Results are delivered into the physician’s EHR in under 2 minutes, covering 46 conditions simultaneously with zero added staff time. The physician reviews and approves every result before it enters the clinical record.

1. Patient completes a short natural interaction with GIA® before or during the AWV
2. GIA® analyzes 2,500+ speech biomarkers and visual signals
3. Risk indicators identified across cognitive, neurological, and behavioral conditions simultaneously
4. Results delivered to physician’s EHR in under 2 minutes
5. Physician reviews results and applies clinical judgment
6. Clinician approves before results enter the clinical record

GIA® screens. It does not diagnose. Every result is reviewed by a clinician before entering the clinical record. No clinical action is taken without clinician approval.

Conditions GIA® Screens for at the AWV

GIA® screens for 46 conditions in a single interaction — including conditions that CMS recognizes as part of comprehensive AWV assessment:

• Cognitive decline (AUC 0.890)
• Mild cognitive impairment
• Alzheimer's disease
• Parkinson's disease (AUC 0.97)
• Depression (AUC 0.816)
• Anxiety (AUC 0.775)
• PTSD (AUC 0.800)
• Bipolar disorder
• Sleep disorders
• And 36+ additional conditions

Full condition list available at scienzahealth.com/screening.

AWV Billing and Reimbursement

AWV cognitive screening supports reimbursable clinical workflows under Medicare. Relevant codes include G0438 (initial AWV), G0439 (subsequent AWV), 96127 (brief emotional and behavioral assessment), G0444 (annual depression screening), and 99483 (cognitive assessment and care plan services).

Reimbursement rates vary by locality, payer, and practice setting. Verify current rates at the CMS Physician Fee Schedule lookup.

This page does not constitute billing or legal advice. Reimbursement eligibility depends on documentation, payer policies, and clinical circumstances. Consult your billing team or a qualified coding professional.

Zero Added Appointment Time

GIA® screening completes before the physician enters the room. Results are waiting in the EHR when the AWV begins — giving the physician immediate clinical context without extending the visit or adding staff burden.

• Screening completes before or during patient check-in
• Results in EHR in under 2 minutes
• No trained administrator required
• No additional staff time
• No added appointment time
• Consistent screening at every AWV

Clinical Validation

GIA® has been validated across 19 peer-reviewed research studies from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, NIH, and MIT — covering 12.3M+ patients and 27B+ clinical records. GIA® is produced by an FDA-registered medical device establishment and is HIPAA compliant.

Frequently Asked Questions

Read about AI cognitive screening → · Screening vs diagnosis →

AWV for Neurologists → · AWV for Primary Care →