Medicare Blog

why is medicare and medicaid so important to the people in the united states

by Garrison Daugherty MD Published 2 years ago Updated 1 year ago
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Medicare and Medicaid

Medicaid

Medicaid in the United States is a federal and state program that helps with medical costs for some people with limited income and resources. Medicaid also offers benefits not normally covered by Medicare, including nursing home care and personal care services. The Health Insurance As…

aimed to reduce barriers to medical care for America's most vulnerable citizens – aging adults and people living in poverty. At the time Medicare was enacted, 19 million Americans enrolled. Today, that number has reached 56 million, or 17 percent of the population.

It covers essential services like annual check- ups, care for new and expecting mothers, and dental care for kids from low-income families. INCREASING ACCESS: Medicare and Medicaid provide more and more Americans with access to the quality and affordable health care they need and deserve.

Full Answer

Is Medicaid and Medicare the same thing?

The terms Medicare and Medicaid sound similar and are both government-funded health insurance programs, but the programs are not the same thing and the terms are not interchangeable. Navigating the world of health insurance is difficult enough, and with the surprisingly low amount of information available about these two systems, it’s no wonder that things can sometimes get confusing.

How to combine Medicare and Medicaid to save money?

You should have the following information ready when you apply:

  • Full legal name, Date of Birth, Social Security Number, Citizenship or Immigration Status for you and anyone in your household who is applying for health care coverage.
  • Most recent federal tax filing information (if available).
  • Job and income information for members of your household for the month prior or the current month. ...

More items...

How does Medicare impact the healthcare system?

Medicare influences patient access in three ways. First, Medicare provides a reliable source of funds for healthcare institutions. The institutions can only access these funds if they offer healthcare services. Therefore, healthcare institutions have an incentive to offer services.

What are the benefits of Medicare Medicaid?

  • Deductible: This is an annual amount that a person must spend out of pocket within a certain time period before an insurer starts to fund their treatments.
  • Coinsurance: This is a percentage of a treatment cost that a person will need to self-fund. ...
  • Copayment: This is a fixed dollar amount that an insured person pays when receiving certain treatments. ...

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Why is Medicare so important?

#Medicare plays a key role in providing health and financial security to 60 million older people and younger people with disabilities. It covers many basic health services, including hospital stays, physician services, and prescription drugs.

Why is healthcare so important in the United States?

High-quality health care helps prevent diseases and improve quality of life. Healthy People 2030 focuses on improving health care quality and making sure all people get the health care services they need. Helping health care providers communicate more effectively can help improve health and well-being.

Why is healthcare important to the community?

A healthy community benefits every person in it. And community health is one means of achieving a healthy community. The field of public health aims to protect and improve health by addressing the structures and systems that define a place—and by supporting the people who live and work there in making healthy choices.

Why is healthcare important to a country?

Healthcare holds a significant place in the quality of human capital. The increased expenditure in healthcare increases the productivity of human capital, thus making a positive contribution to economic growth (4, 5).

How does CMS work?

About 140 million Americans rely on CMS to access health care. CMS: 1 Oversees Medicare, Medicaid, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). 2 Manages health care coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA), including its health insurance exchange marketplace on HealthCare.gov. 3 Helps oversee health care privacy and certain nationwide provider quality standards. 4 Helps ensure beneficiaries continue to receive health care even in the face of disasters and public health emergencies. CMS helps state and tribal leaders, health care providers, and other federal offices get the information they need to respond to emergencies.

What is CMS in the federal government?

How CMS Fits in the Federal Government. CMS is a federal agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) .

What is marketplace insurance?

The marketplace is a one-stop-shop for people to enroll in ACA-compliant health insurance plans. The ACA also prohibits discrimination in health coverage and requires insurance plans to cover pregnancy care and birth control without a copay.

What is CMS in healthcare?

CMS helps state and tribal leaders, health care providers, and other federal offices get the information they need to respond to emergencies.

How much does Medicaid pay for family planning?

Medicaid pays for 75% of all U.S. publicly funded family planning services. One out of every five American women of reproductive age uses Medicaid to access primary and reproductive health care, including cancer screenings, birth control, STD testing and treatment, and maternity care.

Who is the CMS administrator?

The CMS administrator — along with the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and HumanServices (HHS) — makes long-term health care policy decisions for the entire country.

When was CMS founded?

The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) was founded in 1977. The person who runs it — the CMS administrator — is in charge of access to publicly funded health care services and health care coverage in America.

What is the difference between Medicare and Medicaid?

Medicare and Medicaid are two government programs that provide medical and other health-related services to specific individuals in the United States. Medicaid is a social welfare or social protection program , while Medicare is a social insurance program. President Lyndon B. Johnson created both Medicare and Medicaid when he signed amendments ...

How many people are eligible for both medicaid and medicare?

Dual eligibility. Some people are eligible for both Medicaid and Medicare. Currently, 12 million people have both types of cover, including 7.2 million older adults with a low income and 4.8 million people living with a disability. This accounts for over 15% of people with Medicaid enrolment.

What is Medicare Part C?

Medicare Part C. Medicare Part C, also known as Medicare Advantage Plans or Medicare+ Choice, allows users to design a custom plan that suits their medical situation more closely. Part C plans provide everything in Part A and Part B, but may also offer additional services, such as dental, vision, or hearing treatment.

How many people are covered by Medicare?

Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), oversee both. Data on Medicaid show that it serves about 64.5 million people, as of November 2019. Medicare funded the healthcare costs ...

What is the federal reimbursement rate for Medicaid?

This Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) changes each year and depends on the state’s average per capita income level. The reimbursement rate begins at 50% and reaches 77% in 2020.

How many people in the US have health insurance?

The CMS report that around 90% of the U.S. population had medical insurance in 2018. According to the 2017 U.S. census, 67.2% of people have private insurance, while 37.7 percent have government health coverage.

Where does Medicare money come from?

Most of the funding for Medicare comes from: payroll taxes under the Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) the Self-Employment Contributions Act (SECA) Typically, the employee pays half of this tax, and the employer pays the other half.

Why is Medicaid important?

Why Medicaid is important. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Medicaid has become a lifeline for those who’ve lost their health coverage or are unable to find work. The pandemic has put enormous financial stress on many individuals and families across the country, and unemployment remains high.

What is Medicaid eligibility?

Eligibility is most often determined based on current income status, family size, and residency, which includes qualified non-citizens. Many Medicaid beneficiaries have special health care concerns and the program generally provides care and services that address their needs.

What is Medicaid 2021?

March 11, 2021 Louise Hoy. Medicaid is the largest health coverage program in the United States, offering comprehensive free or low-cost medical insurance to our nation’s most vulnerable individuals and families. Across the country, 75 million people have some type of Medicaid coverage – giving them ...

Does medicaid cover all births?

Medicaid also covers millions of people who are employed, but do not have health coverage through their jobs or do not earn enough to purchase coverage. And it covers half of all births in the United States. Medicaid is a joint federal and state program available to support the health needs of nearly all people with low incomes.

How does Medicare help?

It is pushing for better delivery of health care, with initiatives to improve quality and coordination, prevent avoidable readmissions to the hospital and reduce infections caught while at the hospital.

Why is the Medicare program important?

And it helps insulate beneficiaries from rising health care costs. People enrolled in the program may still pay thousands of dollars a year for health care, but their access to health care is vastly better than before the program existed.

What is Medicare for older people?

Medicare is a lifeline that puts health care in reach of millions of older Americans. But it does much more: By helping older Americans stay healthy and independent, Medicare eases a potential responsibility for younger family members. Knowledge that Medicare's protections will be there when needed brings peace of mind to people as they get older. ...

When was Medicare enacted?

When Medicare was enacted in 1965 nearly 1 in 3 seniors lived in poverty. Older people were more likely to be poor than any other age group. Yet in its first 10 years, Medicare helped cut their poverty rate in half.

Does Medicare pay for hospice?

Finally, for the terminally ill, Medicare offers a hospice benefit that helps individuals get compassionate, end-of-life care, typically in their own home. Medicare can lead the way to better care for everyone.

Does Medicare cover health insurance?

Here are some of the many ways Medicare matters: Medicare guarantees affordable health insurance. Before Medicare, almost 1 in 2 older Americans had no health insurance and faced a bleak future if they got seriously ill.

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What's All The Fuss About?

  • A lot of times people question why Medicaid and Medicare are so important. We are going to present, with facts and data, why these programs are so important.
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The Numbers

  • According to a report by The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, there were 55 million Medicare beneficiaries in 2015. This information was based on CMS Program Statistics from centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), accessed March 2016. There are 68 million individuals were enrolled in Medicaid as of April 2017 according to Medicaid.gov. There are currently 326 million …
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Why Do These Numbers Matter?

  • When the numbers from Medicaid and Medicare are added together, they equal a little more than a third of the population of the US. Now there is some overlap due to dual eligibles. A dual eligible is a person who is enrolled in both Medicaid and Medicare. The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation reported there were 9.9 million people who qualify as dual eligibles in 2011. This includes those …
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What About Health Care Facilities?

  • On the other side of the coin are the health care facilities. These facilities provide a service but the services that are offered are often quite expensive. Medicaid and Medicare offer a way for these health care facilities to be able to bring in money to expand their services, pay their employees, and continue to offer quality health care.
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