Medical vs Medicare vs Medicaid?

Having recently become responsible for my 63 y/o mother who has had a stroke and is permanently disabled, I am trying to understand all the options for her financialcare and healthcare. Mom is likely to require financial and medical assistance in the future. Can someone provide a simple explanation of the difference between Medical vs. Medicare vs Medicaid? I am finding much of this to be very confusing....

Tx!

medical insurance is either an "individual" policy or a "group" policy. group policies are usually an employee group through that persons employer. individual policies are purchased by an individual and/or family usually by people who are self-employed or do not have group coverage provided by employer.

Medicare is a federal program of insurance provided to most people over 65 or to disabled people who have been receiving SSI disabilty payments for at least 24 months. Medicare has four parts. Part A is for hospital expenses and will have a deductible in 2008 of just over $1000 per 60 day benefit period. it has no premium if an individual or their spouse has worked at least 40 quarters in their lifetime or if an individual has qualified for Medicare through a disability. Part B of Medicare covers doctor expenses, in or out of hospital and medical expenses out of hospital. it normally has a premium. for 2008 the premium is $96.40. everyone pays this unless you are on SSI disability or qualify for low income assistance. Part C of Medicare are Medicare Advantage Plans available through a healthcare company. they will usually have no or a very low premium and come in three basic formats (HMO, PPO, PFFS). they usually provide all your Medicare benefits plus extras such as vision and dental.

Medicare Part D is the pharmacy benefit initially offered in 2006. it is also purchased from healthcare companies as a stand alone drug card or as part of a Part C Medicare Advantage Plan mentioned above. all plans must meet or exceed specific minimum requirements set by Medicare. most plans have a coverage gap, commonly referred to as the "donut hole". in 2008 the gap starts once you have purchased $2510 of prescriptions. usually there is no coverage in the gap. coverage again starts up after you have spent over $4050 of your own money on prescriptions. then your drug plan will pay at least 95% of your drug cost until the end of the calendar year.

Medicaid is a joint federal and state program. it is income and asset based. it has no age requirements. a person can have both Medicare and Medicaid (Dual Eligibles). each state sets their own guidelines for qualification. Medicaid is meant to be insurance for indigent people, so the income and asset requirements are set pretty low.

hope this helps.

All the above posters are correct, except, Medi-Cal is the name for medicaid in California.

Medicare - Government funded, for all persons at least 65, no matter how rich or poor. She will qualify in two years, based on age.

Medicare - Government funded, for poor persons of any age. She may or may not qualify now, depending on whether she has any money and/or income.

Medical - Paid by the person, their family, or their employer. She probably does not qualify, because she does not have an employer and will not meet the underwriting criteria for an individual policy.

Medicare is the health plan that people usually get when they turn 65, but sometimes qualify for when they are disabled (that sounds liek the case with your mother).

medical? Well it is all medical insurance, but maybe you mean private medical insurance, or a medicare supplement. I cannot really answer that part of the question.

Maybe you should talk to an insurance agent if you are looking for a medicare supplement (or Medicare Advantage Plan).

Medical isn't a program, it's a word. Medicare is only for people who are 65 or older, or receiving SSDI, or in end stage renal failure. Medicaid is welfare health insurance, for the extremely low income - and it's judged by HOUSEHOLD income, AND assets, so if she owns a house, that could be a problem.

You probably should talk to a senior advocate in your area, to see what OTHER viable options there might be.

the best way to deal with this is to vote for a person who wants the USA to have universal healthcare..

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