Medicare and Medicaid are both government-funded health plans that are available to certain citizens in the United States. Both of these programs have specific rules about who is eligible and what the programs offer. Medicare is for those over the age of 65 or disabled persons, while Medicaid is for those with very low incomes.
Age Requirements
In order to gain access to Medicare, you have to be over the age of 65. The only exception to this rule is if you have a qualifying disability. In that case, you could potentially obtain Medicare at any age. With Medicaid, there are no age requirements. Young people could potentially get coverage as well as older citizens. Medicaid tends to go to families that have young children or to those who are too old to work.
Medicare Options
If you qualify for Medicare coverage, there are several different plans from which you could choose. The basic Part A and Part B are offered through the federal government, and they provide coverage for hospital services as well as doctor visits. You could choose a Medicare Advantage Plan (Part C) that includes many other types of medical coverages. You can also choose Part A and B and then purchase additional Medigap plans to provide specific types of coverage.
Premiums
With either of these programs, you may or may not have to pay a monthly premium. With Medicare, if you only choose Part A, you will not have to pay any monthly premium. If you choose Part B to go along with your Part A coverage, you will have to pay a $50 monthly premium. With Medicaid, some people do not have to pay a premium depending on their incomes, while others have a small monthly spend-down limit.
Payments
With both of these programs, the payments for medical services will be made directly to the medical facilities that administer the care. If you have Medicare, you generally can have 80 percent of the covered costs paid for. This percentage can be greater if you choose a Medicare Advantage plan. With Medicaid, 100 percent of the costs are usually covered. In some cases, only a percentage of the retail cost of the service will be paid.
Income Requirements
With Medicare, there are no income requirements associated with this coverage. As long as you are over age 65 or disabled, you qualify for Medicare coverage. With Medicaid, you have to meet certain income requirements that are updated on an annual basis. When being considered for Medicaid coverage, the government will look at your income as well as the assets that you may have. They could look at your bank account balances as well as any assets that you could easily convert to cash.
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