Difference between Medicare and Pharmacare
Medicare and Pharmacare are both health insurance plans for senior citizens. Medicare is for US citizens while Pharmacare is for Canadian citizens. Both provide medications and health facilities to their subscribers. They have different plans depending upon different health issues and complexities in medical histories. Let us discuss about these differences.
Medicare.
Medicare is a national health care insurance plan that is available to the patients/citizens via various insurance companies. Health insurance is provided to the citizens of 65+ age or younger with disabilities such as End Stage Renal Disease or Rheumatoid. There are basically two ways of getting Medicare coverage and these are either through original Medicare or through Medicare Advantage.
After signing up for Medicare, patients need to choose any of the given three parts of Medicare Plans. All of these plans cover different services such as inpatient hospital stays, outpatient care, home health care, medical supplies and prescription drugs.
Pharmacare.
Pharmacare is a publicly funded medical insurance plan for medications; having limited pharma care plans. It consists of 8 plans, each having different coverages. Some plans are income based, some are for permanent residents, some offer mental health services etc.
The basic coverage that each plan has, include drugs prescribed by physicians, diabetes related drugs and equipment, replacement therapy products and medications prescribed by the doctor. Pharmacare covers dispensing fees, clinical services fees and fees for publicly funded vaccines.
| Medicare | Pharmacare | |
|---|---|---|
| What is it? | A national health care insurance plan for US citizens. | A publicly funded medical insurance plan for Canadian citizens. |
| Plans | Two plans having 4 parts. | 8 different plans. |
| Coverage | Inpatient and outpatient care, medical supplies and prescription drugs. | Prescribes drugs, diabetes drugs and equipment, therapy, and medications. |
| Eligibility | A senior citizen above 65 or person with any disability. | Already have Medical services plan coverage and give Pharmacare permission to check their income. |
Venn Diagram
