Instead, you will use the membership card your private plan sends you to get health services covered. One of the first steps to understanding Medicare is learning the difference between the parts. Medicare has four main parts: A, B, C and D. If you join a Medicare Advantage Plan (like an HMO, PPO, or PFFS), you will not use the red, white, and blue card when you go to the doctor or hospital. A type of Medicare health plan offered by a private company that contracts with Medicare to provide you with all your Part. Medicare is a federal health insurance program for Americans over the age of 65 and those under 65 with certain disabilities and medical conditions. If you join a Medicare Advantage Plan you generally get all your Medicare benefits, which may include prescription drugs. You may pay a monthly premium for this coverage, in addition to your Part B premium. Many different kinds of Medicare Advantage Plans are available. You also typically get Part D as part of your Medicare Advantage benefits package (MAPD). The program was expanded in 1972 to cover. Together, these two parts are known as Original. Medicare is the federal health insurance program created in 1965 for people ages 65 and over, regardless of income, medical history, or health status. Medicare Advantage Plans must offer, at minimum, the same benefits as Original Medicare (those covered under Parts A and B) but can do so with different rules, costs, and coverage restrictions. Medicare Parts A and B are run by a federal agency called the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

If you want, you can choose to get your Medicare coverage through a Medicare Advantage Plan instead of through Original Medicare. These Medicare private health plans, such as HMOs and PPOs, contract with the federal government and are known as Medicare Advantage Plans. Part C is the part of Medicare law that allows private health insurance companies to provide Medicare benefits. Medicare Part C is not a separate benefit.

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