Does Medicare Pay for a Hospital Bed at Home?

If you or a loved one needs a hospital bed at home — after a surgery, during recovery, or for a long-term condition — the first question is almost always the same: will Medicare pay for it? The short answer is yes, in many cases. Here's how it works in plain English.

When Medicare covers a hospital bed

Medicare Part B treats a home hospital bed as durable medical equipment (DME). It's generally covered when both of these are true:

• Your doctor prescribes it as medically necessary. That means your condition requires positioning or features a regular bed can't provide — for example, needing the head or feet elevated, or help getting in and out of bed safely.
• Your supplier is enrolled in Medicare. The bed must come from a supplier that's approved to bill Medicare — Avista Medical is one, and we bill Medicare directly so you don't have to file anything.

What you'll pay

With Original Medicare, once you've met your Part B deductible, Medicare typically pays 80% of the approved amount and you're responsible for the remaining 20% — unless you have a supplement plan or Medicaid that picks that up. If you have a Medicare Advantage plan, coverage is at least as good, but the details vary by plan. The honest answer for any individual person is: it depends on your exact plan — which is why we verify your benefits before anything ships and tell you exactly what, if anything, you'll owe.

How to get one — step by step

• 1. Talk to the doctor. Your doctor documents why a hospital bed is medically necessary and writes the order.
• 2. Send us the order. Call or text 800-929-5044, or have the doctor's office or discharge planner send it directly. If getting the paperwork feels overwhelming, give us the doctor's name and office number — we'll request it ourselves.
• 3. We verify your coverage. We check your Medicare or Medicare Advantage benefits and tell you the exact cost before delivery.
• 4. Delivery and setup. We deliver the bed to your home and set it up so it's ready to use. Hospital-discharge orders are prioritized — usually next-day, and in some cases same-day.

Coming home from the hospital?

If a discharge is coming up, don't wait until the last day. Tell the discharge planner you'd like to work with Avista Medical, or call us with the discharge date — we coordinate with care teams every day so the bed is ready when the patient gets home.

Avista Medical serves New York, Florida, Maryland, North Carolina, and Washington DC. Call or text 800-929-5044 and we'll check your coverage for you — it costs nothing to ask.