Medicare Part A (hospital insurance) is one of the four parts of Medicare. It covers your costs for inpatient hospital stays, skilled nursing facility (SNF) care, hospice care, and certain home health services.
Simple Retirement Benefits helps families in Round Rock, Manor, and across Central Texas sort through Part A questions like these throughout the year.
Here is what Part A actually covers, what it costs in 2026, and who qualifies for it without a monthly premium.
Explore Plan OptionsInpatient care: Services you receive in a hospital, skilled nursing facility, rehab facility, or psychiatric facility. Part A covers:
- General nursing
- Semi-private rooms
- Meals
- Medical social services
- Drugs that you take during a stay
- Dietary counseling
- Physical, occupational, and speech therapy
Hospice: If you have a life expectancy of 6 months or less. Part A covers hospice care, including:
- Pain management medications
- Medical and nursing services
- Durable medical equipment
- Symptom management
- Social services
- Nurse aide services
- Grief counseling
Home healthcare: This care is covered by both Medicare Part A and Part B. On several occasions, a home health company will manage the services for you. Coverage includes:
- Medical social services
- Physical, occupational, and speech therapy
- Part-time nursing care
- Injectable osteoporosis drug
- Part-time home health aide services
Eligibility for Medicare Part A
Americans aged 65 and older are eligible to enroll for Part A. Those under 65 with disabilities and qualifying diseases such as End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) are also eligible. You may get premium-free Medicare Part A if you or your spouse have worked ten years and paid Medicare payroll taxes during that period.
If you cannot get premium-free Part A, you will pay a monthly premium.
What Does Medicare Part A Cost?
As long as you or your spouse have worked for at least ten years (40 quarters) and paid Medicare taxes, your premium for Part A will be free. That is not to say you can walk into a hospital to receive free health care. You are still required to pay a deductible, which is $1,736 for each benefit period in 2026.
Also, if you don't automatically qualify for a premium-free Medicare Part A, your monthly premium for 2026 is $565 if you have worked less than 30 quarters. You will pay $311 a month if you have worked between 30 to 39 quarters and paid Medicare taxes.
These figures are federal, so they apply the same way whether you're here in Austin or in one of the 17 other states we're licensed in.
Contact Simple Retirement Benefits to see how these costs apply to your specific situation.
Something to think about... Austin did not become the Live Music Capital by booking cover bands. The scene runs on people who know their instrument and play it themselves. Simple Retirement Benefits works the same way out of Austin: licensed agents who know Medicare directly, not a script-reading call center. When you reach out we will walk through your Part A inpatient benefits with you personally.