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are automatically eligible for Medicaid. To apply for SSI,
contact the Social Security office. You must be either
over age 65, blind, or disabled. The 2020 income limit
for SSI is $803 per month for single people and $1195
for married couples who reside together. The countable
resource limit (not counting your home) is $2000 for
single people and $3000 for married couples who live
together. If you previously qualified for SSI, but your
eligibility terminated solely because of cost of living
increases in your Social Security benefits, you may qualify
for Medicaid under the Pickle amendment. Disabled
widows or widowers who previously qualified for SSI,
but whose SSI terminated solely because they began to
receive Social Security because of the death of a spouse or
former spouse, can retain their Medicaid eligibility under
the disabled widow program until they become eligible
for Medicare. Disabled adult children who previously
qualified for SSI, but whose SSI terminated solely because
they began to receive Social Security benefits on a parent’s
work record when a parent dies , retires, or becomes
disabled can retain their Medicaid eligibility under the
disabled adult child program. People who qualify for
SSI or whose individual gross incomes (not counting the
income of a spouse) are below $2349 (2020) and who
have countable resources (not counting the home) below
$2000 may qualify for Medicaid that can cover services
in the home under various Medicaid waiver programs if
they would otherwise qualify medically for admission
to a nursing home. For information about Medicaid
waiver, contact SARCOA at (334) 793-6843. For more
information about qualifying for Medicaid because you
live in a nursing home or under the Pickle amendment or
as a disabled widow or as a disabled adult child, contact
your local Medicaid District Office at 334-702-3100.
Hospital insurance (Part A)
Most people age 65 or older who are citizens or
permanent residents of the United States are eligible for
free Medicare hospital insurance (Part A). You are eligible
at age 65 if:
• You receive or are eligible to receive Social Security
benefits; or
• You receive or are eligible to receive railroad retirement
benefits; or
• You or your spouse (living or deceased, including
divorced spouses) worked long enough in a government
job where Medicare taxes were paid; or
• You are the dependent parent of a fully-insured
deceased child.
If you do not meet these requirements, you may be able
to get Medicare hospital insurance by paying a monthly
premium. If your income is less than the income limits
for QMB and you are age 65 or over, you may be able
to get Medicare hospital insurance without paying a
monthly premium. Usually, you can sign up for this
hospital insurance only during designated enrollment
periods.
NOTE: Even though the full retirement age is no longer
65, you should sign up for Medicare three months before
your 65th birthday.
Before age 65, you are eligible for free Medicare hospital
insurance if:
• You have been entitled to Social Security disability
benefits for 24 months; or
• You receive a disability pension from the railroad
retirement board and meet certain conditions; or
• If you receive Social Security disability benefits
because you have Lou Gehrig’s disease (amyotrophic
lateral sclerosis); or
• You worked long enough in a government job
where Medicare taxes were paid and you meet the
requirements of the Social Security disability program;
or
• You are the child or widow(er) age 50 or older, including
a divorced widow(er), of someone who has worked
long enough in a government job where Medicare
taxes were paid and you meet the requirements of the
Social Security disability program.
• You have permanent kidney failure and you receive
maintenance dialysis or a kidney transplant and:
• You are eligible for or receive monthly benefits under
Social Security or the railroad retirement system; or
• You have worked long enough in a Medicare-covered
government job; or
• You are the child or spouse (including a divorced
spouse) of a worker (living or deceased) who has
worked long enough under Social Security or in a
Medicare-covered government job.
Medical insurance (Part B)
Anyone who is eligible for free Medicare hospital insurance
(Part A) can enroll in Medicare medical insurance (Part
B) by paying a monthly premium. Beneficiaries with
Modified Adjusted Gross Incomes (Adjusted Gross
Income plus tax-exempt interest) of $87,000 if single
or $174,000 if married filing jointly (2020, but based
/www.sarcoa.org