Nursing Home Costs Covered by Medicare and Medicaid - AgingCare.com:
Medicare coverage of nursing home costs
In order for Medicare to cover a person's nursing home stay, the person must:
Have been hospitalized for medically necessary inpatient hospital care for at least three, consecutive days, not counting the date of discharge,
Be admitted to the nursing home within 30 days after the date of discharge from the hospital,
Require skilled nursing or rehab care on a daily basis for a condition for which the patient was hospitalized, and
Receive a physician's order that such care is needed.