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MEDICARE PART A
Medicare Part A: Hospitalization
Medicare Part A helps cover your care in hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, hospice, and some home health care. You must meet certain conditions to get these benefits. Note that Part A does not cover custodial or long-term care, although there may be coverage for this type of care under other provisions of Medicare. See our section on other benefits at the link below.
Most people automatically get Part A coverage without having to pay a monthly premium because they and/or their spouse paid into Medicare through their payroll taxes while they were working. If you didn’t pay into Medicare through your taxes, you may still be eligible but you might have to pay a premium to get Part A coverage.
If you aren’t sure if you have Part A, look on your Medicare card to see if it has "Hospital (Part A)" printed on it. You can also call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213. You can visit them at the link below.
Part A Premiums
Most people do not pay a premium for Part A (hospital or skilled nursing coverage), since most people have paid into the Medicare system over the years through their payroll taxes. If you paid taxes to Medicare for 10 or more years, there is no premium for Part A coverage.
However, if you paid Medicare taxes for less than 10 years, there is a monthly premium based on the number of years you did pay taxes.
- If you paid taxes for less than 10 years but at least 7½ years, the monthly premium is $233.
- If you paid taxes for less than 7½ years, the monthly premium is $423.
Part A Deductibles and Co-payments
In addition to monthly premiums (if any), Medicare recipients must meet a deductible before benefits begin. This is the amount you must pay before Medicare pays anything.
The Part A deductible for 2008 is $1,024 per illness, and covers the first 60 days of a hospital stay. That is, if you are in the hospital for up to 60 days, you pay $1,024 and Medicare pays the rest of the hospital bill.
If you are hospitalized for more than 60 days, then you pay $256 a day for the next 30 days (days 61 through 90). If you are hospitalized for more than 90 days, you pay $512 a day for each day after 90 days. This is one of the reasons many people carry supplemental private insurance, also known as ‘Medigap’ insurance.
Note that for a skilled nursing facility, Medicare covers up to 100 days. The co-insurance begins after day 21, and is $128 per day.
For more information on Part A premiums, deductibles, and co-pays, click here.
Help With Medicare Costs
Remember that Medicare is insurance. Like any insurance, it has a monthly cost (your premium); annual deductibles (the amount you must pay each year before the insurance pays), and; co-pays (what you pay each time you get a service). If you are on a limited income, Medicare has programs that can help you pay these costs.
For more information, you can click English or Spanish below.
- Your Medicare Benefits or Sus Beneficios Medicare
- Medicare & You or Medicare y Usted
- You Could Save Up To... or Usted podría ahorrar hasta...
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