Benefits period begin the day a beneficiary starts to receive benefits for a particular condition in a Medicare approved facility. The periods once the individual has been home and has not received care for 60 consecutive days. There is no limit to the number of benefit periods an individual can have during a year or a lifetime.

This is an important point considering that Medicare pays all expenses for the stay in the hospital after a deductible first 60 days of $792.00 for each benefit period. This is different than most major medical plans that charge deductibles on a yearly basis. If the patient is still receiving care after the first 30 days, Medicare pays expenses only after a deductible of $198.00 per day. If care continues past 90 day and into Lifetime Reserve days then Medicare pays after a deductible of $396.00 per day. All benefits stop after this period, unless a new benefit period starts.

If the beneficiary qualifies to receive care in a skilled nursing facility Medicare pays all expenses for the first 20 days. If the beneficiary remains qualified and care continues after 20 days, a deductible of $99.00 per day starts with benefits stopping entirely after 100 days.

To a limited extent and under certain circumstances, Medicare Part A will cover some home health care services, but only if the care is skilled in nature. It also pays for hospice care for eligible terminally ill patients.