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Low-Income Subsidy Designed to Help Qualifying Seniors Pay for Prescription Drugs

If you qualify for Medicare and have limited resources, you may also qualify for the low-income subsidy available to people who need extra help. This subsidy is intended to help individuals pay for their Medicare drug plan’s monthly premium, yearly deductible, and coinsurance/copayments.  It can also limit any coverage gaps.

 To qualify for extra help, you need to have limited income and limited resources available to you.   This year, you might qualify if you alone make below $15,315 and have resources under $11,710.  If you are married and living with your spouse (with no other dependents), you must make below $20,353 per year and have resources under $23,410. 

A number of people automatically qualify for this extra help. For instance, if you have full Medicaid benefits, are receiving help from your State Medicaid program, or are receiving SSI without Medicaid, you will most likely automatically qualify for the low-income subsidy.  If you do, you will receive a letter from Medicare to inform you of your status.  After qualifying, you need to choose a Medicare drug plan in order to reap the benefits of your extra help. Research your available plans and select one that covers the medication you require.  If you don’t select a plan, Medicare will select one for you.

Even if you don’t automatically qualify for extra help, you may be able qualify by applying.  To apply, contact Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 or visit them online at www.socialsecurity.gov. 

Medicare Application Tips: Tips to Make Applying For Medicare Easier

First of all, the Medicare is a US government program that offers health insurance plans for its citizens or residents who is over the age of 65. However, there are also certain criteria that make younger citizens to be eligible for Medicare.

The CMS or the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services is responsible for running Medicare and both you as well as your supplier should apply for Medicare in order for you to get the benefits it offers as well as for the physician to accept the coverage.

To apply for Medicare, you first need to know about the latest information in order for you to get the proper information that will prevent in making the wrong decisions when applying.

Many people asks the question about who needs to apply for such health insurance plan. First of all, people who become 65 years old or over will be automatically enrolled to Medicare. A notification will be sent to the person before his or her 65th birthday which means that there will be no need to apply for Medicare.

If you are already receiving Social Security benefits or Railroad benefits, you will also be automatically enrolled for Medicare Part A and Part B.

If you are not automatically added to Medicare plans, then you will need to apply for yourself. You will need to get the form CMS 4OB, which is the Application for Enrolment in Medicare form and can be collected from your local Security Admin Office. You might want to call them first on their toll free number in order to make an appointment. By doing so, they will be able to arrange a suitable time for you to discuss your application for Medicare.

As you can see, it is quite simple to apply for Medicare. If you are over the age of 65 and are a citizen of the US, you will be automatically enrolled to Medicare. And, If you meet certain conditions and you are not over the age of 65, such as having end stage renal disease or any disability, you can apply for yourself.

Remember these application tips and you can be sure that applying for Medicare will be easy.