Medicare comes in parts. Part A covers hospital care. Part B covers doctors and outpatient care. Part D covers prescription drugs. Part C (Medicare Advantage) is a private plan that bundles them together.
What matters most
Part A and Part B
Part A helps cover inpatient care in hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, hospice, and home health care. Part B helps cover services from doctors, outpatient care, and many preventive services.
Part C bundles it together
Part C (Medicare Advantage) is a private plan that offers an alternative to Original Medicare. These bundled plans include Part A, Part B, and usually Part D.
Part D is for drugs
Part D helps cover the cost of prescription drugs. You add it to Original Medicare as a separate plan, or you get it built into most Medicare Advantage plans.
Want the detail? How it works, a worked example and common mix-ups are in .
Words on this page
Original Medicare
Part A and Part B, the coverage run by the federal government
Medicare Advantage (Part C)
a private plan that bundles Part A, Part B, and usually Part D
Part D
Medicare's prescription drug coverage
Who can answer for your situation
If you're not sure what parts you have or need, call Medicare at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) or your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP).
Part D is how Medicare helps pay for your prescriptions.
The two main ways to get Medicare
One way is Original Medicare, which includes Part A and Part B. With it, you can use any doctor or hospital that takes Medicare, anywhere in the U.S. You can add a separate Part D plan for your prescription drugs.
The other way is Part C, called Medicare Advantage. It is a private plan that offers an alternative to Original Medicare. Most of these plans include Part D, so you don't need to join a separate drug plan.
An example
Say you're turning 65. You could keep Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) and add a separate Part D drug plan. Or you could pick one Medicare Advantage plan (Part C) that packages Part A, Part B, and usually Part D together.
Common mix-ups
These are the pairs people most often mix up.
Part C vs. Part D
Part C (Medicare Advantage) is a whole way to get your Medicare from a private plan. Part D is the drug coverage. Most Part C plans already include Part D.
Original Medicare vs. Medicare Advantage
Original Medicare is Part A and Part B. Medicare Advantage (Part C) is an alternative to Original Medicare, offered by private plans.
They're for two different paths. Medigap only helps pay your costs under Original Medicare, so it can't be used with a Medicare Advantage plan. In most cases, a company can't sell you Medigap while you're in Medicare Advantage.
The web shows only the closest connections, so it stays a guide rather than a maze.
Can I trust this?
Checked by TapTap. Every fact on this page was checked against the official sources it quotes, on September 27, 2026.
Checking compares each fact with the official source it quotes. It isn’t medical or legal advice.
1 What the source says · Part A (Hospital Insurance)
Part A helps cover inpatient care in hospitals, skilled nursing facility care, hospice care, and home health care.
Checked September 24, 2026
2 What the source says · Part B (Medical Insurance)
Part B helps cover: Services from doctors and other health care providers
Checked September 25, 2026
3 What the source says · Medicare Advantage (also known as Part C)
These "bundled" plans include Part A, Part B, and usually Part D.
Checked September 24, 2026
4 What the source says · Part D (Drug coverage)
Part D helps cover the cost of prescription drugs.
Checked September 24, 2026
5 What the source says · Medicare Advantage (also known as Part C)
Medicare Advantage offers an alternative to Original Medicare for your health and drug needs. You get benefits through a private health plan that Medicare approved.
Checked September 25, 2026
8 What the source says · Original Medicare
Original Medicare includes Part A and Part B. You can use any doctor or hospital that takes Medicare. You can join a separate Medicare drug plan to get Medicare drug coverage (Part D).
Checked September 25, 2026
9 What the source says · Part B (Medical Insurance)
Outpatient care
Checked September 25, 2026
10 What the source says · Part B (Medical Insurance)
Many preventive services (like screenings, shots or vaccines, and yearly “Wellness” visits)
Checked September 25, 2026
12 What the source says · Your Medicare options
Medicare Advantage (also known as Part C)
Checked September 25, 2026
13 What the source says · Your Medicare options
When you first sign up for Medicare and during certain times of the year, you can choose which way to get your Medicare coverage. There are 2 main ways:
General education, not individualized advice. For your own situation, you can call 1-800-MEDICARE or your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP).
Benny
Reading this page with you
Hi, I’m Benny. I can help you find the right guide and see how things connect.
I don’t write answers of my own yet. For now I’ll point you to the guides that match, and each one shows its sources.
I can help with
What I know about you
Nothing. On these public pages I don’t use any personal details, so everyone sees the same guides.
