Medicare Part A in Oregon — hospital coverage

Medicare Part A is the part of Medicare that covers inpatient hospital stays, skilled nursing facility care after a qualifying hospital stay, hospice care and some home health care. Most Oregon residents get Part A without a premium because of their work history, but the inpatient deductible and daily coinsurance still apply. CMS publishes the 2027 Part A amounts each fall; the amounts below are for 2026.

Eligibility and premium

You get premium-free Part A if you or your spouse earned at least 40 quarters of work paying Medicare taxes (about 10 years). People under 65 who have received Social Security disability benefits for 24 months, and people with ALS or end-stage renal disease who qualify, also get premium-free Part A.

If you don't have enough work history, you can buy Part A:

If you have to buy Part A and don't sign up when you're first eligible, your premium may go up 10% for twice the number of years you waited. If your income is limited, the Oregon Department of Human Services can tell you whether a Medicare Savings Program could pay the Part A premium.

What Part A covers

Inpatient hospital stays

Part A covers a semi-private room, meals, nursing, and drugs and supplies you get as an inpatient. Doctors' services in the hospital are billed under Part B.

Skilled nursing facility (SNF) care

Part A covers SNF care only after an inpatient hospital stay of at least 3 days in a row (counting the day you're admitted but not the day you're discharged), when your doctor orders daily skilled care such as therapy or nursing. Time spent under observation status doesn't count toward the 3 days.

Medicare Advantage plans can set their own rules for skilled nursing, and some don't require the 3-day hospital stay; check the plan's Evidence of Coverage.

The benefit period: the rule that surprises people

Part A doesn't reset each January like Part B. It uses benefit periods:

• A benefit period begins the day you're admitted as an inpatient in a hospital or SNF.
• It ends when you haven't had any inpatient hospital or SNF care for 60 days in a row.
• Each new benefit period means a new deductible ($1,736 in 2026), and the day counts start over.

That is why someone hospitalized twice in one year can pay two Part A deductibles. Most Medigap plans pay all or part of the Part A deductible; see Medigap in Oregon.

Hospice care

Part A covers hospice care for people whose doctor certifies a terminal illness with a life expectancy of 6 months or less, and who choose comfort care instead of care to cure the illness. Hospice care is usually given at home, including in an adult foster home or a nursing facility. Medicare hospice covers:

• Doctor and nursing services related to the terminal illness
• Medical equipment and supplies
• Drugs for pain relief and symptom control
• Short-term inpatient care and inpatient respite care so caregivers can rest
• Social work, counseling and grief support for you and your family

You may pay a small copayment for each outpatient prescription for pain and symptom control, and 5% of the Medicare-approved amount for inpatient respite care. Once you choose hospice, Original Medicare covers it even if you're in a Medicare Advantage plan.

Oregon's Death with Dignity Act is a separate state law. Medicare hospice covers comfort care whether or not someone makes a request under the Act, but federal law (42 U.S.C. 14402) bars Medicare from paying for the medication. Read Death with Dignity and Medicare, POLST and Medicare in Oregon and does Medicare cover hospice in Oregon?

Home health care

Part A and Part B both cover home health care, but only when:

• You're under a doctor's care, with a plan of care your doctor reviews regularly
• You need part-time or intermittent skilled nursing, physical therapy, speech-language therapy, or continued occupational therapy
• You're homebound: leaving home takes considerable effort
• The home health agency is Medicare-certified

Medicare home health doesn't cover 24-hour care at home, meal delivery, or homemaker and personal care when that is the only care you need. In Oregon, the Department of Human Services Aging and People with Disabilities program offers in-home help through Medicaid and Oregon Project Independence; call 1-855-673-2372. See does Medicare cover home health in Oregon?

Hospitals in Oregon and Part A

With Original Medicare, you can use any hospital in the U.S. that accepts Medicare. With a Medicare Advantage plan, you generally use the plan's network hospitals except in an emergency. Much of rural Oregon is served by the state's 25 Critical Access Hospitals, small rural hospitals with special Medicare status, from Astoria and Tillamook on the coast to Burns, Lakeview, John Day and Enterprise in eastern Oregon (Oregon Office of Rural Health). They accept Medicare and may transfer complex cases to larger hospitals in the Willamette Valley, Bend, Medford or Portland. See rural Oregon and Medicare.

When to enroll in Part A

If you already get Social Security benefits, you're enrolled in Part A automatically at 65. If not, sign up with Social Security during your Initial Enrollment Period, the 7 months that start 3 months before the month you turn 65. If you qualify for premium-free Part A, you can sign up any time after you turn 65.

See the full enrollment guide.

Related guides

• Medicare Part B in Oregon
• Medigap in Oregon
• Medicare costs in Oregon
• Does Medicare cover skilled nursing in Oregon?

Questions about how Part A works with Medigap or a Medicare Advantage plan in your county? You can request a call from a licensed insurance agent.

Sources

• CMS — 2026 Medicare Parts A & B premiums and deductibles
• Medicare.gov — Inpatient hospital care
• Medicare.gov — Skilled nursing facility care
• Medicare.gov — Hospice care
• Medicare.gov — Home health services
• Medicare.gov — Avoid late enrollment penalties
• CMS — Are You a Hospital Inpatient or Outpatient? (observation status and the MOON)
• 42 U.S.C. 14402 — Restriction on use of federal funds (Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act), via Cornell LII
• Oregon Health Authority — Death with Dignity Act 2025 data summary release (April 2, 2026)
• Oregon Office of Rural Health (OHSU) — Oregon's Critical Access Hospitals
• Oregon Department of Human Services — Aging and Disability Services

Frequently asked questions

Medicare in your Oregon county

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