The Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) is a program created by Medicare to help low-income Medicare beneficiaries pay their Medicare Part A premiums, Medicare Part B premiums and a portion of Medicare coverage costs such as deductibles and co-insurance.

If you are a part of this program and doctors, suppliers, and providers are billing you for services and items covered by Medicare, including deductibles, coinsurance, and co-payments, it is illegal for them to do this. You should not pay these bills if you are a part of the QMB program.

You can click here to read about what you can do if this happens to you from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

If you have QMB, the first page of your Medicare Summary Notice (MSN) should now show that you are in this program (only for people in the program). If you have trouble paying for premiums, co-insurance amounts, or other health care costs (like prescriptions), there are federal, state and local programs that might be able to help. Find your local senior service agency at www.eldercare.gov and call to ask for a benefit screening.

Haven't received your new Medicare Card

in the mail yet?

There are two ways to receive it!

The Center for Medicare Services (CMS) mailed all Illinois Medicare beneficiaries their new Medicare card last summer.

If you have not received your card there could have been a problem with your address. CMS has informed the Illinois SMP that you can receive your new card one of two ways.

As a reminder, the old Medicare cards with the Social Security numbers on them can be used through the end of 2019, but Medicare is encouraging doctors and beneficiaries to begin using the new cards as soon as they receive them.

If you have any questions or concerns about not receiving your new Medicare Card, please contact the Illinois SMP at AgeOptions at (800)699-1463.

Have a wonderful week!

Travis Trumitch

travis.trumitch@ageoptions.org

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This project was supported, in part by grant number 90MPPG0036, from the U.S. Administration for Community Living, Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, D.C. 20201. Grantees undertaking projects under government sponsorship are encouraged to express freely their findings and conclusions. Points of view or opinions do not, therefore, necessarily represent official Administration for Community Living policy.

The Illinois SMP at AgeOptions partners with agencies across the state to empower and assist Medicare beneficiaries, their families, and caregivers to prevent, detect, and report health care fraud, errors, and abuse through outreach, counseling, and education.

Please share this Fraud Alert with colleagues, consumers, or other professionals in your area and visit our website to sign up for our Fraud Alert email list.