Medicare

Public benefits that can be considered in public charge assessments include safety-net and health programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicare.

Nearly 7 million people on Medicare use telehealth services each year.

Medicare payments for telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic were enabled by temporary, pandemic-era administrative allowances that required periodic reauthorization to remain in effect.

In 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services proposed rules that would prohibit federal Medicaid reimbursement for gender-affirming medical care for patients under age 18, prohibit Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) reimbursement for patients under age 19, and block Medicaid and Medicare funding for services at hospitals that provide pediatric gender-affirming care.

Annual open enrollment for traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage begins on October 15 (in 2025, the period began on 2025-10-15).

People who are in the United States illegally are generally ineligible to enroll in Medicaid or Medicare and are not eligible to purchase health insurance through the Affordable Care Act marketplace.

U.S. federal rules prohibit undocumented immigrants from receiving federal funds for health coverage through Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act's premium tax credits (as of 2025-10-05).

A 2025 Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI) American Values Survey of 5,543 U.S. adults found 62% said the country was going in the wrong direction, with 92% of Democrats, 71% of independents, and 24% of Republicans saying the country was going in the wrong direction.

Beginning with the 2025 tax year, federal income tax does not apply to cash and electronic tips received by employees, with a maximum annual exclusion of $25,000, although tip income must still be reported for Social Security and Medicare purposes.

In 2020, the federal government expanded Medicare telehealth coverage during the COVID-19 public health emergency by reimbursing a wider range of telehealth visits, removing the geographic requirement, and allowing patients to receive telehealth services from their homes.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Medicare reimbursed telehealth services only under limited circumstances, such as when patients were located in designated rural areas or when patients connected from eligible clinical sites like hospitals or clinics.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Agriculture update the Dietary Guidelines for Americans every five years.

Mandatory federal spending does not require annual approval by Congress and includes entitlement programs such as Social Security and Medicare.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) provide or insure financing for health projects such as short-term rehabilitation, long-term skilled nursing care, and other facilities that serve senior citizens and Medicare recipients.

U.S. Medicare and Medicaid programs cover drugs that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved for treatment of Type 2 diabetes.