Video: Knock on Wood| Webinar: ACR/CHEST ILD Guidelines in Practice
fa-facebookfa-linkedinfa-youtube-playfa-rss

An official publication of the ACR and the ARP serving rheumatologists and rheumatology professionals

Not Junk Mail: Social Security Letter Can Cut Medicare Costs

Mark Miller  |  

The asset limit is $8,780 (single) or $13,930 (married couple). The asset definition includes funds in checking or savings accounts, stocks, bonds, mutual funds and Individual Retirement Accounts. Your home, car, life insurance policies and other miscellaneous items are not counted.

Partial help is available to enrollees with somewhat higher income and assets.

ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

Meaningful Relief
Determine your eligibility by calling the SSA’s toll-free line (800/772-1213) or apply online. Another key resource for assistance is your local State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP). These are federally funded nonprofits that provide free one-on-one Medicare counseling and assistance.

If you are eligible, you can enroll immediately in a Part D plan that participates in the Extra Help program through a Special Enrollment period, rather than wait until the annual fall Medicare plan enrollment window.

ADVERTISEMENT
SCROLL TO CONTINUE

For seniors struggling to get by on very limited fixed incomes, programs such as this can provide very meaningful relief—and it is frustrating that the assistance is not getting to everyone who qualifies. But Extra Help is just the tip of the iceberg. A recent analysis from NCOA and the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging found that more than 4 million low-income seniors could increase their annual budget by up to 29% by taking advantage of benefit programs that help with everything from healthcare to food, utility payments and property tax relief.

(The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.)

Related Articles

    Why Would You Ever Write a Letter of Recommendation or Support?

    I vividly recollect asking my physics professor for a letter of recommendation. I sat in the front row of his lectures and visited his office hours most weeks in the semester. He turned me down because he was “too busy.” I was devastated—and panicked about asking my next choice for letter writer. On the plus…

    Medicare Advantage Grows, but Provider Choice Is Limited

    CHICAGO (Reuters)—Medicare enrollees are moving in greater numbers than ever to the program’s managed care option as a way to save money. But the tradeoff is much less ability to use their preferred doctors and hospitals. Seniors can choose between traditional fee-for-service Medicare—which is accepted by most healthcare providers—or a Medicare Advantage plan. The latter…

    Few Medicare Advantage Plans Cover Social Needs for Chronically Ill Patients

    (Reuters Health)—Most Medicare Advantage plans are not offering chronically ill enrollees supplemental benefits to address social needs, which were added to the government health program in 2018 in an effort to improve health outcomes and achieve cost savings, a U.S. study suggests.1 Researchers examined publicly available data on benefits and plan design for Medicare Advantage…

    Unwelcome News about Medicare’s Rising Drug Plan Costs

    CHICAGO (Reuters)—Seniors have received some unpleasant news in their mailboxes in recent weeks: premiums for many Medicare prescription drug insurance plans will rise at double-digit rates next year. Premiums for the ten most popular Medicare Part D prescription drug plans (PDPs) will rise an average of 8 percent next year—the fastest clip in five years,…