Glossary

Help paying for Medicare Part D for people with low to moderate income and resources. Also known as "Extra Help".

There are two levels of the Low Income Subsidy:

• The full subsidy is for people who also get Medicaid coverage or who are in a Medicare Savings Program (MSP). You may also qualify if your countable income is less than $16,862 per year and your resources are less than $7,560, if you are single (the limits are higher for larger households).
  • With the full subsidy, you will not have to pay a Part D premium or deductible, there will be no donut hole, and there may be lower copayments.
• The partial subsidy is for people who can’t get the full subsidy, but have less than $18,735 in countable income and less than $12,600 in resources, if you are single (the limits are higher for larger households).
  • With the partial subsidy, you will pay 0%, 25%, 50%, or 75% of the Part D premium, depending on your income, and will only have to pay a $85 deductible before you get help paying for drugs. You will have to pay coinsurance and copayments for your medications, but they will be lower than they would be without the partial LIS.

Note: Not all of your income and resources are counted when you apply for the Low Income Subsidy. You can apply for the LIS even if you are not sure that you will qualify.