Medicare is a federally-funded health care program primarily for people over age 65. Individuals with disability or end-stage kidney failure can also qualify for it. Like Social Security, Medicare is funded by the government and by payroll taxes, which are withheld from each paycheck during a person’s employment. Medicare is similar to privately funded health insurance in that beneficiaries have some out-of-pocket costs, such as deductibles and co-pays. Some types of Medicare require beneficiaries to pay a premium; in other Medicare programs, premiums are waived if the beneficiaries have paid sufficient payroll taxes.