Centers
for
Medicare
& Medicaid
Services
Medicare’s
“Extra
Help”
program helps
people with
limited income pay
for their
prescription medications
Making
ends meet
should not mean
going
without
your medications.
If
you
have
limited income and
resources,
you may
qualify
for Extra
Help
to pay
for some
health
care
and
prescription drug
costs.
Drug
costs in 2015 for
most people
who qualify
for Extra
Help will
be no more than
$2.65 for each generic
drug and $6.60
for
each
brand-name
drug.
The
Centers
for
Medicare
&
Medicaid
Services
estimates that more than 2
million people
with Medicare
may
be
eligible
for
Extra
Help,
but aren’t
currently
enrolled
to take advantage
of these
savings.
A recent
law
changed
how
your income and assets
are
counted:
•
Life
insurance
policies
don’t
count as resources
•
Any
help
you
get from
relatives, friends,
and others to pay
for household expenses—like
food, mortgage,
rent,
heating
fuel
or gas,
electricity,
water,
and property
taxes—doesn’t
count as income
Many
People
Qualify
and Don’t
Know
It
Even if
you were
previously
turned down
for Extra
Help due to
income or resource
levels,
you should
reapply.
If
you
qualify,
you’ll
get
help paying
for Medicare
prescription
drug
coverage
premiums,
copayments,
and deductibles.
To qualify,
you must
make less than $17,505
a
year
(or
$23,595 for married
couples).
Even if your
annual
income is higher,
you
still may
be
able to
get some
extra
help.
Your resources
must also be limited to $13,440 (or
$26,860 for
married
couples). Resources
include bank
accounts, stocks,
and bonds,
but not your
house
or
car.
There’s
No Cost
or Obligation
to Apply
It’s
easy
and
free
to apply
for
“Extra
Help.”
You or a
family
member,
trusted
counselor,
or
caregiver
can
apply
online
at
socialsecurity.gov/i1020
or call
Social Security
at
1-800-772-1213.
TTY users should call
1-800-325-0778.
All the information
you
give is
confidential.
You can
also
get
help
in
your
community
from
your
State Health
Insurance
Assistance
Program
(SHIP),
Area
Agencies
on Aging
(AAA),
the Aging
and
Disability
Resource
Centers
(ADRC),
and many tribal
organizations.
For information
about
how to contact
these
organizations,
visit
Eldercare.gov.
To learn more
about Medicare
prescription
drug coverage,
visit
Medicare.gov,
or call
1-800-MEDICARE
(1-800-633-4227).
TTY
users
should call
1-877-486-2048.
This information prepared by
the U.S. Department
of Health
and Human Services.
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