Medicare Part D

The end of the Medicare coverage gap for Olive Branch

OLIVE BRANCH, Miss. — For people on Medicare who are watching every dollar at the pharmacy counter, a federal program called Extra Help — also known as the Low-Income Subsidy, or LIS — can make a real difference in what they pay for prescription drugs in 2027.

Extra Help is run by the Social Security Administration and Medicare. It lowers or eliminates Part D premiums and deductibles for people who qualify, and it caps what they pay for covered prescriptions. The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027, and layering Extra Help on top can bring drug costs down even further for those who meet the income and resource limits.

What Extra Help actually does

Extra Help is a federal benefit that pays part of your Medicare prescription drug costs. Depending on your income and resources, it can:

• Pay all or part of your Part D monthly premium.
• Reduce or eliminate the Part D deductible (which cannot exceed $615 in 2026 or $700 in 2027).
• Lower the amount you pay for each covered prescription.

Congress expanded Extra Help in 2024 so that everyone who qualifies now receives the full subsidy — the older “partial” LIS tier was eliminated. That means more people get more help than in past years.

Who qualifies in 2027

Eligibility is based on two things: your income and your countable resources (like money in checking, savings, stocks, and bonds). Your home, one car, burial plots, and personal belongings do not count as resources.

The income and resource limits are updated each year by the Social Security Administration. As a rule of thumb, people with incomes at or below 150% of the federal poverty level and limited savings can qualify. You may also qualify automatically if you:

• Have both Medicare and full Medicaid,
• Get help from a Medicare Savings Program, or
• Receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI).

If you fall into one of those groups, you should not need to apply — you’ll be enrolled in Extra Help automatically and receive a notice in the mail.

How to apply

You do not have to wait for a Medicare enrollment period to apply for Extra Help. Applications are accepted year-round, and there are three easy ways to file:

• Online at ssa.gov/extrahelp.
• By calling Social Security at 1-800-772-1213.
• In person at a local Social Security office.

The Mississippi State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP), sometimes called MICAP in Mississippi, offers free, unbiased counseling and can help Olive Branch residents work through the application.

Using Extra Help with a Part D plan

Extra Help only works if you are enrolled in a Medicare drug plan — either a stand-alone Part D plan or a Medicare Advantage plan that includes prescription coverage. Olive Branch is in DeSoto County, where multiple Part D and Medicare Advantage prescription drug plans were available for 2026; the 2027 lineup is detailed in each plan's Annual Notice of Change and on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder. If you qualify for Extra Help and are not already in a drug plan, Medicare may enroll you in one so your benefit starts right away. You can switch plans if the assigned one doesn't fit your medications.

Other ways to manage 2027 drug costs

Even if you don’t qualify for Extra Help, there are two program-level changes worth knowing:

• The annual out-of-pocket cap. Once your out-of-pocket spending on covered Part D drugs reaches the cap — $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027 — you pay nothing for the rest of the year on covered prescriptions.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan. This optional program lets you spread your Part D out-of-pocket costs across the calendar year in monthly payments, instead of paying large amounts at the pharmacy counter.

The coverage gap — the old “donut hole” — was eliminated in 2025, so Part D now has three simpler phases: deductible, initial coverage, and catastrophic.

Key dates to remember

• Medicare Annual Enrollment Period: October 15 – December 7 (to join, switch, or drop a Part D or Medicare Advantage plan).
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period: January 1 – March 31 (a one-time switch for those already in a Medicare Advantage plan).
• Extra Help applications: Any time, all year.