Why the Different Plans?

Medicare has the following parts:

•Part A helps pay for inpatient hospital stays but also helps cover skilled nursing care, home health care, and hospice care.

•Part B helps cover medically necessary services like doctors visits and outpatient care.  Part B also covers some preventive services including screening tests and shots, diagnostic tests, some therapies, and durable medical equipment like wheelchairs and walkers.

•Part C is another way to get your Medicare Benefits.  It combines Parts A and B, and sometimes Part D (prescription drug coverage).  Medicare Advantage Plans are managed by private insurance companies approved by Medicare.  These plans must cover medically necessary services.  However, plans can charge different copayments, coinsurance, or deductibles for these services.

•Part D Medicare drug coverage helps pay for outpatient prescription drugs.

 

People can choose to get Medicare health care coverage in several ways. The Medicare plan people choose affects their costs, benefits, and convenience, and their doctor, hospital, and pharmacy choices. No matter how people choose to get their Medicare health care, they are still in the Medicare Program.

Original Medicare is available nationwide. It is also known as “fee-for-service.” We will talk about this more in depth in a few minutes. However, there are other plans besides Original Medicare that people can choose to get their Medicare health coverage.

Congress created Medicare Advantage, also called Medicare Part C, to let private insurance companies offer choices in coverage to people with Medicare. There are several types of Medicare Advantage Plans, as well as other types of Medicare Plans, which we will discuss in a few minutes.

Some people get their Medicare prescription drug coverage as part of these Medicare Advantage Plans and other Medicare plans. There are also Medicare Prescription Drug Plans that add coverage to Original Medicare and some other Medicare plans.