Short-Term Rehab and Medicare
Short-Term Rehab and Medicare
Many seniors are able to use Medicare to access high-quality, short-term rehab. Medicare is the federal health insurance program for people who are 65 or older, certain younger people with disabilities, and people with end-stage renal disease. Short-term rehab falls under Medicare Part A, and seniors can work with short-term rehab administrators to determine whether the government-provided insurance covers the services they need.
What to Know About Short-term Rehab and Medicare
Medicare Part A covers short-term rehab under certain conditions—and for a limited amount of time— in a skilled nursing facility.
Among the short-term rehab services allowed under Medicare are:
- Skilled nursing care
- Physical and occupational therapy
- Medication
- Speech-language pathology services
- Meals
- Semi-private room
- Medical supplies and equipment used in the facility
Short-term Rehab and Medicare: How Patients Qualify
Medicare will cover short-term rehab if patients meet specific criteria—and assuming the skilled nursing facility in question is Medicare-certified. Those criteria include:
- Patients must have Medicare Part A and have days remaining to use in their benefit period.
- There must be a qualifying hospital stay—an inpatient stay of three consecutive days or more.
- The services needed at a skilled nursing facility must be ordered by a physician.
- Patients must require the care on a daily basis, and the services provided must require inpatient residence at a skilled nursing facility.
- The care required must be for a medical condition that was treated during a qualifying three-day hospital stay—or that began while the patient was receiving skilled nursing care for a medical condition that was treated during a qualifying three-day hospital stay.
- The services must be deemed reasonable and necessary.
Making the Most of Short-term Rehab and Medicare
Seniors should feel comfortable engaging with the staff of their short-term rehab of choice to discuss Medicare and a host of related issues such as how their care is planned and their rights and protections under the law.