What Is Medicare's Extra Help?
Medicare's Extra Help is a program designed to help low income seniors pay for Medicare Part D out-of-pocket expenses. In summary, it makes prescription drugs more affordable.
Who Is Eligible?
In general, Medicare recipients with an income of $18,200 for an individual or $24,690 for a couple are eligible. It is believed that as many as 2 million seniors who are not currently using Extra Help may be eligible.
Other Requirements
In addition to income, participants in the Extra Help program must meet the requirement on resources. The limit of resources is $14,100 for an individual or $28,150 for a married couple.
Resources include:
- stocks
- bonds
- bank accounts
Resources do not include:
- car
- home
- life insurance policies
- financial assistance from family/friends
What Does Extra Help Cover?
The level of coverage is based on income and resources. In 2018, most recipients paid $3.35 or less for generic drugs and $8.35 or less for brand-name drugs.
To determine eligibility, contact the Social Security Administration at socialsecurity.gov or 1-800-772-1213.
