MyBravoHealth - What is Medicare?

What is Medicare?

The Original Medicare plan is a federally funded health plan. You may be eligible for Medicare if:

You are over the age of 65.
You have certain disabilities at any age.
You have end-stage renal disease.

Medicare pays for many health care services and supplies. However, it may not cover all of your health care needs, and there are set costs that you must pay, such as coinsurance, copayments, and deductibles.

Medicare contracts with private insurers, such as Bravo Health, to administer services to Medicare recipients. When you join a Bravo Health plan, you will receive your regular Medicare-covered services. You will also have the option to add services or benefits to your plan, or to choose plans that reduce out-of-pocket costs.

What Does Medicare Cover?

The Medicare program consists of 4 parts:

Medicare	What Does It Cover?	What Does It Cost?
Part A – Hospital Insurance	Helps cover inpatient care in hospitals and nursing facilities, hospice care and some home health care.	Most people don't pay a premium for Part A because it has already been paid for through payroll taxes while working.
Part B – Medical Insurance	Helps cover doctors' services, outpatient hospital care and some other medical services such as x-rays, emergency care, physical and occupational therapy, and home health care.	Most people pay a monthly premium for Part B.
Part C – Medicare Advantage Plans	Medicare Advantage plans are approved by Medicare and run by private companies. If you are entitled to Part A and enrolled in Part B, you can enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan. These plans provide added benefits.	You may or may not pay a monthly premium for Medicare Advantage plans, but you may have deductibles or co-pays depending on your benefits package.
Part D – Prescription Drug Coverage	Covers the cost of prescription drugs and is available only through private Medicare Prescription Drug Plans, such as our BravoRx plan.	These plans may have monthly premiums. However, many Medicare Advantage plans already include drug coverage, so a separate drug plan is not needed.

If you have questions about Original Medicare coverage or would like to receive more information about the Medicare program, call toll-free 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). TTY users should call 1-877-486-2048. You can call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Or, visit www.medicare.gov on the web.

Page last updated on 12/2/2011 12:20:50 PM