Medicare Part A and Part B cover certain medical services and supplies in hospitals, doctors’ offices, and other health care settings.
Prescription drug coverage is provided through Medicare Part D. If you have both Part A and Part B, you can get all of the Medicare-covered services listed in this section, whether you have Original Medicare or a Medicare health plan.
To get Medicare-covered Part A and/or Part B services, you must be a U.S. citizen or be lawfully present in the U.S.
What does Part A cover?
- Part A (Hospital Insurance) helps cover:
- Inpatient care in a hospital
- Inpatient care in a skilled nursing facility (not custodial or long-term care)
- Hospice care
- Home health care
- Inpatient care in a religious nonmedical health care institution
You can find out if you have Part A by looking at your red, white, and blue Medicare card. If you have it, it will be listed as “HOSPITAL” and will have an effective date. If you have Original Medicare, you’ll use this card to get your Medicare-covered services. If you join a Medicare health plan, in most cases, you must use the card from the plan to get your Medicare-covered services.
