Medicare

All Americans become eligible for Medicare at age 65, and you are eligible for Medicare even if you continue to work beyond sixty-five. Medicare Part A helps pay for medically necessary hospital care, skilled nursing care, home health care, and hospice care. Knowing that Medicare will meet these expenses makes estate planning/financial planning much easier for most of us.

However, Medicare does NOT pay for most long-term or nursing home care. Most nursing home residents do not require the level of nursing services considered “skilled” by Medicare. Skilled nursing care, under Medicare, means nursing or rehabilitation services that you need for a limited period of time as an inpatient following a hospitalization of at least three days; it is emphatically not long-term care. Not every nursing home participates in Medicare or is a skilled nursing facility.

Medicare does cover part-time or intermittent skilled nursing; physical, occupational, and speech therapy services; medical social services; part-time care provided by a home health aide; and medical equipment for use in the home. It does not cover medications for patients living at home, nor does it cover general household services or services that are primarily custodial.

A hospice provides pain relief, symptom management and supportive services to people with terminal illness. Hospice services may include physician or visiting nurse services, psychological support, inpatient care when needed, home health aide services, drugs (including outpatient drugs for pain relief), and respite care. Respite care is short-term inpatient care (less than five consecutive days) in a facility to give family caregivers some relief. Respite care is available only on a nonroutine basis.