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Hospital Insurance
(Part A)
If you are age 65 or older.
Most people age 65 or older
who are citizens or permanent residents of the United States
are eligible for Medicare hospital insurance (Part A) without
paying a monthly premium based on their own--or their spouse’s--employment.
You are eligible at age 65 if you receive or are eligible
to receive railroad retirement or social security benefits.
(Although the age requirements for some unreduced railroad retirement benefits are rising just like the social security requirements, beneficiaries are still eligible for Medicare at age 65.)
If you are under age
65. Before age
65, you are eligible for premium-free Medicare hospital insurance
if you have been entitled to monthly benefits based on a
total disability for at
least 24 months. (Special rules apply for disabled individuals
diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.)
Eligibility for family members.
Under certain conditions, your
spouse, divorced spouse, surviving divorced spouse, widow
or widower, or a dependent parent may be eligible for hospital
insurance when he or she turns age 65, based on your work
record.
Also, disabled widows and widowers
under age 65, disabled surviving divorced spouses under age
65, and disabled children may be eligible for Medicare, usually
after a 24-month qualifying period.
If you have permanent
kidney failure. If
you have permanent kidney failure, you are eligible for free
Medicare hospital insurance at any age. This is true if you
receive maintenance dialysis or a kidney transplant and you
are eligible for or are receiving monthly benefits under the
railroad retirement or social security system.
In addition, your spouse, divorced
spouse or child may be eligible, based on your work record,
if she or he has permanent kidney failure and receives maintenance
dialysis or a kidney transplant.
Medical Insurance
(Part B)
Anyone who is eligible for free Medicare
hospital insurance (Part A) can enroll in Medicare medical
insurance (Part B) by paying a monthly premium. The basic
monthly premium in 2004 is $66.60 and will increase from year
to year.
How Much Does Medicare Cost?
In addition to the monthly premiums you pay, there are other “out-of-pocket” costs for Medicare, which may also change each year. These are the amounts you pay when you actually receive medical services, known as “deductibles” and “coinsurance.”
For example, if you are hospitalized, you will be required to pay a deductible amount, and may have to pay coinsurance amounts, depending on how long you stay. In 2004, the hospital insurance deductible amount is $876. If you receive medical services from a doctor, you pay a yearly deductible amount as well as a coinsurance amount for each visit. In 2004, the medical insurance deductible is $100.
You can find more information on these Medicare charges by calling the Medicare tool-free number
1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227).
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