While Medicare is broken down in to four different parts; A, B, C, and D, there are a number of plans for someone to choose from under Medicare. Medicare is health insurance provided by the government, not private insurance companies. Someone becomes eligible for Medicare if they are 65 years of age or older, under 65 and receiving disability payments, or if they have permanent kidney damage requiring dialysis. The most basic of plans is the Original Medicare Plan. This plan includes type A, hospital coverage, and type B, basic medical coverage.  An individual will pay a deductible each year, which must be met before the government starts to pay, and co-payments at the time of service. Part B is optional, and if used, the member is subject to a monthly premium as well.

Medicare part C is actually a plan in itself. These plans are called Medicare Advantage Plans. They work like HMO’s and PPO’s.  Such plans include parts A and B and cover extra services outside of the Original Plan, such as dental care, vision care and gym or health club memberships. With an Advantage plan, any medically-necessary service must be covered. Most Advantage Plans also include part D, which is prescription drug coverage. Members of part C are also insured against catastrophic costs over $5,000 and usually have a portion, or all, of their parts B and D premiums refunded.

Part D of Medicare is prescription drug coverage. Someone can have solely a prescription drug plan, of which there are thousands to choose from, based on the drugs needed, a member’s location, and preference of generic or brand-name drugs. A Prescription Drug Plan Finder can be used to find the best plan for an individual.

The rarest form of Medicare is the Medigap plan. It covers some of the holes not filled by the Original Plan, such as providing emergency care outside of the U.S., and in some cases, helping with prescription drug costs. These plans are set up through private insurance companies, which then share the costs with the government.