The answer
What is the difference between Medicare and Medicaid?
Medicare and Medicaid are two different programs that are easy to confuse.
Medicare is a federal health insurance program based mainly on age, covering people 65 and older and some younger people with disabilities, regardless of income. Medicaid is a joint federal and state program based on income and need, helping people with limited income and resources pay for care. The names sound alike, but the qualifying rules are different: Medicare looks at your age or disability, while Medicaid looks at your income. Some people qualify for both programs at the same time, which is called being dually eligible, and the two can work together to cover costs.