Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services facts for kids
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| Agency overview | |
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| Formed | July 30, 1965 |
| Preceding |
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| Headquarters | Woodlawn, Maryland |
| Employees | 4,100 |
| Agency executive |
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The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is a special agency in the United States government. It helps millions of Americans get health care. CMS is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.
CMS manages important programs like Medicare and Medicaid. It also works with states on the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). These programs help people pay for doctor visits, hospital stays, and medicines.
Contents
What Does CMS Do?
CMS makes sure that health care programs run smoothly. It helps people understand their health insurance options. The agency also sets rules to make sure health care is good quality.
Medicare: Health Care for Seniors
Medicare is a health insurance program mainly for people aged 65 or older. It also helps younger people with certain disabilities. Medicare helps cover costs for hospital care, doctor visits, and prescription drugs.
Medicaid: Helping Families and Kids
Medicaid is a program that helps people with lower incomes. It provides health care to families, children, pregnant women, and people with disabilities. Each state runs its own Medicaid program, but CMS works with them.
SCHIP: Health Insurance for Children
The State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) helps children and teens get health insurance. It is for families who earn too much money for Medicaid but cannot afford private insurance. SCHIP makes sure kids can see a doctor when they need to.
Ensuring Quality Health Care
CMS also works to make sure health care is safe and good. It sets standards for places like nursing homes. This helps protect older adults and others who live there. CMS also checks the quality of medical labs.
The agency helps manage HealthCare.gov. This website lets people find and compare health insurance plans. CMS works to make health care easier to understand for everyone.
History of CMS
CMS was created in 1965. It was first called the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA). In 2001, its name changed to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The agency has grown a lot since it started. It now helps more people than ever before.
See also
In Spanish: Centros de Servicios de Medicare y Medicaid para niños
