Part A helps cover inpatient care in hospitals, skilled nursing facility care, hospice care and home health care.

Part B helps cover:

• Services from doctors and other health care providers

• Outpatient care

• Home health care

• Durable medical equipment (like wheelchairs, walkers, hospital beds and other equipment)

• Many preventive services (like screenings, shots or vaccines and yearly "Wellness" visits)

Part D helps cover the cost of prescription drugs (including many recommended shots or vaccines). You join a Medicare drug plan in addition to Original Medicare or you get it by joining a Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage. Plans that offer Medicare drug coverage are run by private insurance companies that follow rules set by Medicare.

Extra insurance you can buy from a private company that helps pay your share of costs in Original Medicare. Policies are standardized and in most state named by letters, like Plan G or Plan N. The benefits in each lettered plan are the same, no matter which insurance company sells it. 

• Original Medicare includes Part A and Part B.

• You can join a seperate Medicare drug plan to get Medicare drug coverage (Part D).

• You can use any doctor or hospital that takes Medicare, anywhere in the U.S. (Includes all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa.)

• You can also shop for and buy supplemental coverage that helps pay your out-of-pocket costs (like your 20% coinsurance).

• Medicare Advantage offers an alternative to Original Medicare for your health and drug needs. You get benefits through a private health plan that is Medicare approved. These "bundled" plans include Part A, Part B and usually Part D. 

• You need to use doctor's in the plan's network and get approval for certain drugs or services before you get them. 

• Usually have different out-of-pocket costs than Original Medicare, including a limit on out-of-pocket costs (so you don't need to buy supplemental coverage like Medigap).

• Most plans offer extra benfits that Original Medicare doesn't cover - like vision, hearing, dental and more.