Kansas seniors eligible for help with Medicare costs
National group praises Kansas agencies for getting people enrolled in the program
TOPEKA — A national organization has praised Kansas area agencies on aging for their work in helping low-income seniors sign up for a Medicare benefit that lets them keep their monthly premium and helps with their deductibles and co-pays.
“Kansas serves as a model for other states when it comes to making people aware of the Medicare Savings Program and getting them to apply for it,” said Rachel Bennett, program development director at the Medicare Rights Center in New York.
Kansas was one of four states profiled earlier this week in a Medicare Rights Center report on states’ efforts to promote Medicare Savings Program (MSP) benefits.
“Kansas has done a lot of things,” Bennett said, “It has a toll-free hotline that people can call, it has brochures, it has people who will help you fill out the application, and the state association of area agencies on aging has started a coalition to make people aware.”
Generally, a senior who’s living on less than $1,354 a month and who has less than $12,510 in savings is eligible for a Medicare Savings Plan subsidy. Couples with monthly income less than $1,822 and less than $25,010 in savings also qualify.
The program includes four levels of subsidies aimed at helping seniors pay their medical bills.
“Medicare is divided into three parts – Part A covers hospitalization, Part B covers outpatient, Part D helps with prescription drug costs,” Bennett said. “For most people, those with a sufficient work history, Part A is premium-free, but for Part B there’s a $96.40 premium that’s taken out of your check every month.”
Those who are eligible for the Medicare Savings Program, she said, get to keep their $96.40.
“It’s not taken out of their checks,” Bennett said. “So, right there, that’s more than a $1,000-a-year benefit.”
The subsidy cost the state and federal governments $18.9 million in the fiscal year that ended June 30. The state’s share of the cost was $4.9 million.
Depending on a senior’s income and savings, deductibles and co-pays also may be covered or reduced.
“There’s a Part D subsidy – it’s called Extra Help - that reduces your prescription drug co-pay considerably and can wipe out the donut hole,” said Pam Brown, a counselor at Jayhawk Area Agency on Aging in Topeka.
The donut hole refers to the gap in prescription drug coverage.
Medicare beneficiaries are expected to buy Part D insurance policies that cover 75 percent of their prescription drug costs up to $2,830. After they reach the $2,830 benchmark, they’re responsible for the next $4,550.
This gap in coverage is known as the donut hole. After a beneficiary reaches the S4,550 out-of-pocket threshold, coverage returns for the rest of the year.
On Jan, 1, the slate is wiped clean and the cycle repeats itself.
In Kansas, more than 40,000 seniors are in the Medicare Savings Program, according to Kansas Health Policy Authority records. Brown said another 14,500 are probably eligible.
“The problem is that while a lot of people know about it, a lot don’t,” she said. “If you’re close to being eligible, Medicare sends you a brochure and an application form. But people don’t know what it is and it gets thrown away.”
Brown encouraged seniors to call the Senior Health Insurance Counseling for Kansas (SHICK) hotline: 1 800-860-5260 or visit their area agency on aging.
“It’s a four-page application,” she said. “It’s fairly easy. We do them all the time.”
SHICK services are free.
-An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the number of Kansas seniors who participate in the Medicare Savings Program.
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