Medicare does not cover long term care.
Yet 38% of Americans in a recent survey thought Medicare would help with nursing home care or home care.
An article from McKnight’s reported:
Thirty-eight percent of people surveyed as part of the 2016 Long-Term Care in America report said they plan on using Medicare to cover their care needs as they get older, despite the fact that the program does not typically cover most long-term care services.
The Medicare website (medicare.gov) clearly states that Medicare does not cover long term care:
Long-term care is a range of services and support for your personal care needs. Most long-term care isn’t medical care, but rather help with basic personal tasks of everyday life, sometimes called activities of daily living.
Medicare doesn’t cover long-term care (also called custodial care), if that’s the only care you need. Most nursing home care is custodial care. Get more information about nursing home care.
Medicare does cover:
- Care in a long-term care hospital
- Skilled nursing care in a skilled nursing facility
- Eligible home health services
- Hospice & respite care