What is Medicare?

Medicare is the federal government program that gives you health care coverage if you are 65 or older, or under 65 and have a disability, no matter what your income.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is the federal agency that oversees Medicare.

This is different from Medicaid, which is a state and federal program offering health care coverage to people of most ages, but generally only those with low income.

Everyone starts with Original Medicare, the traditional fee-for-service program offered directly through the federal government. Most people keep it. In Original Medicare, you are covered to go to just about any doctors or hospital in the country. Everyone who has Medicare receives a "red, white and blue" Original Medicare card.

Some people then choose to get their Medicare benefits through a Medicare private health plan (such as an HMO or PPO), instead of Original Medicare. These plans must offer at least the same benefits as Original Medicare but have different rules, costs and coverage restrictions.

Medicare has different parts that cover inpatient services, outpatient services and prescription drugs at the pharmacy. You can get these parts through Original Medicare or from private plans.

To learn more about the parts of Medicare and to find other basic Medicare information, see the Medicare Basics: FAQ page with information from Medicare Interactive (MI) Counselor, an independent, public resource of the Medicare Rights Center. MI offers expert information and advice on Medicare.

For everything you need to know about Medicare coverage of outpatient prescription drugs, see our page on the Medicare prescription drug benefit (Part D).

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