What Does Medicare Part A Cover?

 

Medicare Part A covers:

Inpatient hospital care, inpatient care in a skilled-nursing facility care (not custodial or long-term care), hospice and some home health-care services.

Most people qualify for premium-free Medicare Part A. If you or your spouse did not work for at least 10 years while paying Medicare taxes, then you could have to pay a premium of up to $422 per month in 2020.

If you are hospitalized, your Medicare Part A coverage and out-of-pocket expenses for each benefit period are (assuming your hospitalization meets Medicare requirements)

 

Deductible: You pay a deductible of $1,340 for each benefit period.

 

Coinsurance per benefit period for hospitalization:

• For days 1 - 60: No coinsurance payment

• For days 61 - 90: $335 coinsurance per day

• For days 91 and beyond: $670 coinsurance per “lifetime reserve day”

 

After a 90-day hospitalization in one benefit period, each additional day counts toward your lifetime reserve of 60 days of hospitalization covered by Medicare Part A. For days beyond your lifetime reserve days: you pay all costs. If you receive care in a skilled-nursing facility, you pay a daily coinsurance of $167.50 for days 21 through 100. Medicare Part A does not cover your costs for days 101 and beyond. Medicare gives you up to 60 lifetime reserve days. Medicare then pays for covered services and you pay a daily coinsurance, after you’ve been in a hospital longer than 90 days within a single benefit period.