Medicare Savings Programs 2026: QMB, SLMB & QI Limits
Medicare Savings Programs help pay your Medicare premiums and costs if your income is limited. See the 2026 income and asset limits for QMB, SLMB, and QI, and how to apply.
Medicare Savings Programs (MSPs) are state-run programs that help pay your Medicare costs, starting with your Part B premium, if your income and resources are below certain limits. For 2026, a single person can often qualify with a monthly income up to about $1,816, and the limits are higher in many states. There are three main programs (QMB, SLMB, and QI), each covering different costs, and qualifying for any of them also enrolls you automatically in Extra Help for prescription drugs.
Just getting started with Medicare? Our complete guide to turning 65 covers eligibility, enrollment, and how programs like these fit in.
What are the Medicare Savings Programs?
MSPs are run by each state's Medicaid office, but they are separate from full Medicaid. You may also see them called Medicare buy-in programs, because the state is effectively buying your Medicare coverage on your behalf. They exist to keep Original Medicare affordable for people with limited income, covering costs on both halves of it: Part A, your hospital insurance, and Part B, your medical insurance.
There are three main programs, plus a fourth for working people with disabilities:
- The Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) Program pays the most: your Medicare Part A premiums if you owe any, your Part B premium, deductibles, coinsurance, and copays.
- SLMB (Specified Low-Income Medicare Beneficiary) pays your Medicare Part B premium.
- The Qualifying Individual (QI) Program also pays the Part B premium, but funding is limited and granted first-come, first-served, so apply early each year.
- QDWI (Qualified Disabled and Working Individual) helps pay the Part A premium for certain working people with disabilities.
2026 income limits
These are the 2026 federal baseline monthly income limits. They already include the standard $20 income disregard, so they are the effective cutoffs. Many states use higher limits, and Alaska and Hawaii are higher, so do not rule yourself out based on this table alone. Your own state's rules are what actually decide this.
| Program (2026) | Monthly income (individual) | Monthly income (married couple) |
|---|---|---|
| QMB | $1,350 | $1,824 |
| SLMB | $1,616 | $2,184 |
| QI | $1,816 | $2,455 |
Every state has its own page with that state's limits, whether it applies an asset test, and how to apply there. Pick your state in the checker below and it will take you straight to it, or browse every state's limits side by side.
What each program pays
| Cost | QMB | SLMB | QI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part B premium | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Part A premium (if you owe one) | Yes | No | No |
| Part A and B deductibles | Yes | No | No |
| Coinsurance and copays | Yes | No | No |
| Skilled nursing facility coinsurance | Yes | No | No |
| Automatic Extra Help (Part D) | Yes | Yes | Yes |
QMB is the most comprehensive: it can wipe out nearly all of your out-of-pocket costs, including the daily coinsurance for a stay in a skilled nursing facility. The other two focus on the monthly Part B premium, which is $202.90/month in 2026.
One protection worth knowing: if you are in the QMB program, providers are not allowed to bill you for Medicare cost-sharing at all. If you get a bill anyway, that is a billing error, and CMS publishes guidance you can point to.
2026 asset limits and resource limits
Most MSPs look at your income and resources together. The resource limits count money in checking, savings, stocks, and bonds:
| Program (2026) | Resource limit (individual) | Resource limit (couple) |
|---|---|---|
| QMB and SLMB | $9,950 | $14,910 |
| QI | $9,950 | $14,910 |
Your home, one car, household goods, burial plots, and life insurance with a face value under $1,500 do not count. Two exceptions work in your favor: as of 2026, more than a dozen states have eliminated the asset test entirely, and other states set higher resource limits. Where asset limits do apply, they are counted separately from income. If you are close, apply anyway.
Source and date: figures are the 2026 federal baseline limits (National Council on Aging / Medicare Rights Center). MSP limits vary by state and update each year. Your state may allow more income, and may set higher resource limits, than shown here. This page is for general information.
Can you have an MSP and a Medicare Advantage plan?
Yes, and a lot of people do. MSP eligibility does not force you into Original Medicare, and it does not stop you joining one of the Medicare Advantage plans, also called Part C, in your area. The MSP keeps paying your Part B premium either way.
Two things change if you have both:
- With QMB, your cost-sharing protection follows you. Medicare Advantage plans still cannot bill a QMB enrollee for copays on Medicare-covered services.
- Qualifying for an MSP makes you dual eligible, which opens up Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans. These are Medicare Advantage plans built specifically for people with both Medicare and Medicaid, and they usually fold in extra benefits.
Qualifying also gives you a special enrollment period, so you are not stuck waiting for fall open enrollment to switch plans.
How to apply for a Medicare Savings Program
You apply through your state Medicaid office, not Social Security. Medicare.gov can point you to the right office for your state:
- Gather proof of income (Social Security award letter, pension statements) and resources (recent bank statements).
- Contact your state Medicaid office or apply online through your state's benefits portal.
- If approved, your Part B premium is no longer deducted from your Social Security check, and QMB enrollees also stop paying most other Medicare costs.
Once you qualify for any MSP, you are automatically enrolled in Extra Help, which lowers your Medicare Part D prescription drug costs to a few dollars or less.
Common questions about Medicare Savings Programs
What is the QMB program?
The Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) Program is the most generous of the MSPs. It covers your Part B premium, any Part A premium you owe, and your deductibles, coinsurance, and copays, so most Medicare cost-sharing disappears.
Who qualifies for a Medicare Savings Program?
Anyone enrolled in or eligible for Medicare Part A whose income and resources fall under their state's limits. Because states set their own thresholds, MSP eligibility is worth checking even if the federal baseline looks too low.
What is the income limit for a Medicare Savings Program in 2026?
The federal baselines run by program, from roughly $1,350 a month for one person for QMB up to roughly $1,816 for QI, the highest of the three. Limits are higher for a couple, higher again in Alaska and Hawaii, and many states allow more.
Can I get Medicare Part B for free?
Effectively yes. All three main programs cover it, which is what stops it being deducted from your Social Security payment.
Do Medicare Savings Programs vary by state?
Substantially. States can raise the income limits, raise or remove the resource limits, and run their own application process, which is why two neighbors in different states can get different answers. Find your state's Medicare Savings Program limits to see which rules apply to you.
Is QMB the same as full Medicaid?
No. QMB covers Medicare cost-sharing. Full Medicaid is broader and has its own eligibility rules, though some people qualify for both.
Do my retirement accounts and home count against me?
Your home does not count. Retirement accounts usually do, though treatment varies by state, and states without an asset test do not look at either.
Talk to a licensed Medicare advocate
Not sure whether your income and resources put you under your state's limit? A licensed Medicare Advocate can check your situation against your own state's rules, at no cost and with no pressure to enroll.