Medicare vs Medicaid
Medicare vs. Medicaid
Medicare and Medicaid are similar, but not synonymous. One operates on a national scale, while the other is offered on the state level with coverage and eligibility determined by the state. This will give a closer look into the similarities, demographics, and other ways in which these two programs differ from one another.
Interested in learning more?
Who they help
Medicare and Medicaid share one common purpose – reducing medical expenses. Even with this shared objective, the fork in the road comes from who these programs are designed for.
It’s possible for someone to fit into both, but the number of people who qualify for one and not the other dwarfs the number of people who can have Medicare and Medicaid at once.
Medicare is much less exclusive
Medicare is designed for seniors and those who have been receiving disability benefits for a minimum of 24 months. If you’re 65 and older, it doesn’t matter what your socioeconomic status is, or how severe your health problems are. You don’t even have to have health problems to get Medicare coverage. Unlike other health insurance options, pre-existing or life-threatening conditions won’t have any impact on how much you pay for treatments.
Medicaid is income-based
Medicaid isn’t limited to a specific age group. Anyone of any age can join, but that’s a matter of where one falls in annual income. States set the standards for what constitutes low-income, and that’s based on the individual’s Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI). If you struggle financially yet still find yourself earning beyond your state’s income limit, you can opt to “spend down”, meaning you can deduct your medical costs from your MAGI, which will effectively qualify you for Medicaid.
But there’s more. These also factor into what makes a person eligible:
- Being pregnant
- Having a disability
- Having children
There’s another alternative for when someone has an income above the state’s MAGI standards. If you have children and need additional assistance, you can apply for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). However, income still plays a role here, but the income requirements are not as stringent.
How Medicare and Medicaid work together
If you’re eligible for both programs, you will not only have cheaper coverage – you will also have access to discounted services that you wouldn’t otherwise have with just Medicare alone.
With both, you can get coverage for:
- Home health
- Nursing facilities
- Early & Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Treatment services (EPSDT)
Some Medicaid programs offer some optional benefits like:
- Additional medication coverage
- Podiatry services
- Chiropractic treatments
- Case management
- Speech therapy
When you get Medicaid and Medicare together, you go from a situation in which you are financially limited to a few treatments, to gaining the financial freedom to get almost any treatment you need.
For more information
At Medicare With Jake, we pride ourselves in letting our clients know the best options they have when it comes to saving money on medical treatments. We may be in Wichita, Kansas, but we help senior citizens in all parts of the country. You didn’t choose your financial situation, the same way you didn’t choose to have health issues. But we give you the choice and the power to have affordable healthcare and to live a long and healthy life.
