By Jackie Dover
Every day it seems the cost of food, medicine, basically everything goes up. What income seniors have is spread thin, and it looks like this will be a trend for the foreseeable future. If only there was a way to save money on some of the essentials like prescriptions and Medicare costs. Luckily, there is.
There are several extra help programs that can help Medicare Beneficiaries save on all the parts of Medicare. The program with the highest income and assets is Low-Income Subsidy through Social Security, also known as Extra Help. This program can reduce or eliminate the monthly premium paid to the prescription drug plan. It also eliminates the deductible if the plan has one.
And even better, it limits how much you pay for a covered medication, someone with Extra Help will not pay more than $12.15 for a name brand medication and no more than $4.90 for a generic. This can be a massive savings on medicine costs. To qualify you must meet the income and asset guidelines; monthly income of $1,976 and assets below $17,600 for a single person and $2,664 monthly for a couple with their assets below $35,130. The asset limits do NOT include your home or car.
Medicare Savings Programs (MSP) are programs that help pay Medicare premiums, makes you eligible for extra help with your prescription costs and sometimes other costs. The Medicare Savings Programs pay the Medicare Part B premium, $185 that is held out of your Social Security check.
That would be like getting a raise, and more money in your pocket is always a good thing. The highest income for these programs starts at $1,781 a month for a single person with assets of less than $9,660. For a couple the highest qualifying income is $2,400 monthly with assets less than $14,470.
One of the MSP programs called QMB, also pays the Medicare Part A & B deductibles and the co-pays and co-insurance on doctor and hospital visits, the income guidelines for QMB begins at $1,325 monthly for a single person and $1,783 for a couple, the asset limitations are the same for all the MSP programs. Most people do not pay a Medicare Part A premium, but some do. If you qualify for one of the MSPs, it will also pay the Part A premium and late enrollment penalties.
MoHealthnet is the Medicaid program here in Missouri. If you qualify for Medicaid, it can pay for doctor visits, hospital stays and prescriptions. For some it can also pay for transportation to medical appointments, home-delivered meals and in-home care. Medicaid limits are the lowest of the extra help programs, income limit for a single person is $1,109 with an asset limit of $5,909 and a couple with monthly income below $1,498 and assets under $11,819.
Aging Matters will do applications for all extra help programs, so if you have questions or need more assistance, please call Aging Matters at 1-800-392-8771, because Aging Matters.