Have you been receiving a subsidy (extra money) to help pay for prescription drugs under Medicare? If you want to continue receiving this subsidy, you were supposed to have filed information with the Social Security Administration (SSA). If you did not do so, SSA should have recently sent you “SSA Medicare Prescription Drug Assistance Notice of Termination.” It means that as of April 1, 2008 you will no longer receive the subsidy for your prescription drug costs.
You may file an appeal with SSA if you believe you are still eligible for this subsidy (if your assets and income are still low enough). For more information, go to http://www.socialsecurity.gov/prescriptionhelp/.
You must appeal soon. If you file within 10 days of receiving the Notice, your subsidy will not be cut off as of April 1. Otherwise, you must file within 60 days of receiving the Notice, but you will not receive the subsidy while your appeal is being considered.
Please be aware that:
- your current drug plan must let you know how much your drug plan will cost without the subsidy, and
- you have a 90-day special enrollment period to enroll in a less expensive drug plan.
