Medicare Savings Programs in Indiana: 2026 income limits and how to apply

Who qualifies

You can get a Medicare Savings Program (MSP) in Indiana if you:

• Have Medicare Part A, or qualify for it
• Live in Indiana
• Have income and assets under the limits below

2026 limits (effective March 1, 2026)

Asset limit (all three programs, from January 1, 2026): $9,950 for an unmarried person, or $14,910 for a married couple living together.

How Indiana compares

Federal law sets a floor: QMB at 100% of the poverty level, SLMB at 120% and QI at 135%. Indiana uses 150%, 170% and 185%. So a single person with income up to $1,995 a month can get full QMB help in Indiana. Under the federal floor, the QMB limit would be $1,350.

What counts and what does not

Income

The limits are for monthly net income, after some income is left out.

• Your income is yours. Income paid to one spouse belongs to that spouse. Income paid to both is split equally.
• Not counted: SNAP and other nutrition benefits (including Meals on Wheels), energy assistance such as EAP, HUD housing payments, and township trustee payments.
• Small, irregular income: up to $20 a month of unearned income and $10 of earned income is not counted if it comes only now and then.
• Taken off: taxes that must be withheld, and pension money taken back to repay an overpayment.
• Social Security held back by Social Security to repay an overpayment is not counted, because you did not receive it.

Assets

Counted: bank accounts, cash, stocks, bonds, and property other than your home.

Not counted:

• The home where you live
• One vehicle used to take you places, whatever its value
• Household goods and personal effects
• Burial spaces
• Up to $1,500 in a separate account set aside for burial, for each person
• Life insurance cash value, if the face value of all your and your spouse's policies is $1,500 or less

What each program pays

QMB (Qualified Medicare Beneficiary)

Pays your Part A premium (if you do not get Part A free), your Part B premium, and the deductibles, coinsurance and copayments for services Medicare covers. Medicare providers are not allowed to bill you for covered services, except a small Medicaid copayment if one applies.

SLMB (Specified Low-Income Medicare Beneficiary)

Pays your Part B premium.

QI (Qualifying Individual)

Pays your Part B premium.

All three programs also give you Extra Help with Part D drug costs automatically. If you also qualify for full Medicaid and are 60 or older, you will be enrolled in Indiana PathWays for Aging.

How to apply

1. Apply one of these ways:
   • Online at the FSSA Benefits Portal, fssabenefits.in.gov
   • By phone with DFR at 800-403-0864
   • In person at your local DFR office, weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. local time
2. Send any papers DFR asks for to FSSA Document Center, P.O. Box 1810, Marion, IN 46952, or bring them to your local DFR office.
3. Wait for a notice. DFR begins once your application is complete. A decision can take up to 90 days.
4. Check your status at the Benefits Portal or by calling 800-403-0864 with your case number.

A certified Indiana Navigator can help you apply for free. If you want DFR to talk with a family member about your case, sign the Authorization for Disclosure of Personal and Health Information form.

After you apply

• Read every notice. DFR sends a notice any time it takes action on your case, with your appeal rights. Questions go to DFR at 800-403-0864.
• Appeals: If you are denied, your appeal must reach DFR by 4:30 p.m. local time on the 33rd day after the notice was sent. Mail or fax it to the FSSA Document Center, take it to your local DFR office, or call your DFR office (a phone request is recorded and counts). To keep your benefits the same during an appeal, DFR must get it before the date the change takes effect.

Things people miss

• Many people qualify who think they earn too much. Indiana's limits are far above the federal floor. Check the table before you rule yourself out.
• Do not cash in a small life insurance policy to get under the asset limit. If the total face value is $1,500 or less, it does not count.
• Apply even if you are a little over. Some income is not counted.

Free help

• Indiana SHIP (State Health Insurance Assistance Program): free, unbiased Medicare counseling, 800-452-4800.
• Area Agencies on Aging / ADRCs (INconnect Alliance): 800-713-9023.
• DFR: 800-403-0864.

For other programs, see all benefits in Indiana. To learn more about Part B costs, see Medicare Part B.

Phone numbers: Free help lines for Indiana agencies

Check what you may qualify for