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Medicare Monitor

The Palm Beach Post's veteran Washington correspondent, Larry Lipman, tracks policy makers and interest groups who are shaping the future of the federal health insurance program for the elderly.

Medicare Web Resources

Government

•Medicare
•Medicare Frequently Asked Questions
•Medicare Booklet
•Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
•Medicare Payment Advisory Commission

Organizations

•AARP
•America's Health Insurance Plans
•Brookings Institution
•Center for Medicare Advocacy
•Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
•Century Foundation
•Commonwealth Fund
•Families USA
•Florida 50+
•Heritage Foundation
•Kaiser Family Foundation
•Medicare Rights Center
•National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare
•National Academy of Social Insurance
•National Center for Policy Analysis

Blogs
•AARP Issues Blog: Medicare
•Cato Institute Health Care Blog
•Entitled to Know National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare
•The Health Care Blog

Medicare at a glance
Medicare is the federal health care system that covers about 36 million people age 65 and older, plus 7 million disabled. It has four parts:

Part A Covers inpatient hospital care as well as nursing home, home health and hospice care. Nearly all elderly and disabled Americans qualify for Part A coverage.
Financed by a 2.9 percent payroll tax divided equally between employees and employers.

Part B Covers outpatient care, doctor’s services, durable medical equipment, home health visits and preventive care. Part B coverage is voluntary, but roughly 40 million are enrolled.
Financed by beneficiary premiums and federal general revenue. Current monthly premiums are $93.50. Starting this year, individuals whose taxable income is more than $80,000 will pay a higher premium.

Part C Medicare Advantage managed care plans provide health care normally covered by Medicare Parts A and B. They may also provide some other benefits, including prescription drugs, not covered by traditional Medicare. Oart C is voluntary; about 7 million beneficiaries are enrolled.
Financed by Medicare and beneficiary premiums, which vary among plans.

Part D Medicare prescription drug plans come in two types, those that just cover prescription drugs and those that cover drugs as part of a broader managed care benefit. Part D is voluntary. About 9.2 million beneficiaries are in stand-alone drug plans and about 5.1 million are in managed care drug plans.
The plans are private and financed by Medicare and beneficiary premiums, which vary among plans.
-- Larry Lipman