You might be eligible for a Medicare Savings Program

If your income is low, you might be able to get help paying your Medicare premiums and copays through a Medicare Savings Program. Millions of older adults and people with disabilities are enrolled in these programs, but millions more are eligible for help and don’t get it. They are not aware or can’t navigate their way through the maze to apply. Mark Miller reports for the New York Times on the Trump administration’s decision in its budget law to reject a Biden administration initiative that made it easier to enroll in Medicare Savings Programs.

Now, instead of helping people enroll in Medicare Savings Programs through less paperwork, the Trump administration continues the paperwork burden. This administrative nightmare has left six million people who are eligible for Medicare Savings Programs not enrolled.

Enrolling not only offsets Medicare premium costs and copays, at times, but also qualifies people for help paying for their Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage through the LIS or Low-Income Subsidy program. The Republicans supporting the paperwork burden prioritize $66 billion in federal government savings in the next ten years over helping older Americans and people with disabilities in need.

As it is, it appears that people’s Medicare Part B premiums will increase 11.6 percent in 2026, and their Social Security benefits will increase just 2.7 percent. In addition, Part D premiums could go up a lot. These costs consume about 25 percent of a typical person’s Social Security check. When you add in dental, vision, hear and long-term care costs, people are spending 39 percent of their Social Security checks on health care.

Medicare Savings Programs are worth about $8,400 a year to the people who are enrolled in them. Even though people in Medicare Savings Programs do not qualify for full Medicaid benefits, you apply through your state Medicaid office. You can do so at any time. Each state sets slightly different income and asset limits as qualifying criteria. Some states have no asset limit. Click here to see the limits in your state and keep in mind that the income and asset calculations discount certain items.

To be sure, health care costs are rising rapidly for older adults and people with disabilities. Not surprisingly, the number of older Americans living in poverty is way up over the last few years. In 2024, 15 percent were living in poverty as compared to 10.7 percent in 2021.

For free help enrolling in a Medicare Savings Program: Contact your State Health Insurance Assistance Program or SHIP online or at 877-839-2675.

To enroll in a prescription drug program: Apply online at the Social Security Administration website or call 800-772-1213 or visit your local Social Security office.

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