Healthcare
Healthcare assistance programs help people with low or moderate incomes get medical coverage and care. Medicaid provides low-cost or no-cost health coverage to eligible adults, children, pregnant women, seniors, and people with disabilities; income limits vary by state. CHIP (the Children’s Health Insurance Program) covers kids in families that earn too much for Medicaid but still need affordable coverage. If you buy your own insurance, the Health Insurance Marketplace offers premium tax credits that lower monthly costs for many households. Community health centers also provide care on a sliding fee scale, even if you have no insurance at all. Our guides explain who qualifies for each healthcare program, how to apply through your state agency or the Marketplace, and where to find the official applications — always backed by .gov sources.
- Free Dental Care for Seniors 65+: Donated Dental Services
Volunteer dentists have donated $581 million in treatment to 178,922 patients — and being 65 or older is by itself one of the three ways to qualify
- Help Paying for Glasses for Seniors 2026: New Eyes vs VSP
Medicare pays for one pair of glasses only after cataract surgery — New Eyes covers a basic pair for a $15 application fee
- Rides to the Doctor for Seniors 2026: Medicaid vs Nonprofits
Medicare pays for an ambulance, not a ride. Medicaid must ensure one by federal law — and the same rule covers meals, lodging, and an escort's costs
- Low-Cost Clinics Near You: Community Health Centers 2026
Medical and dental care on a sliding scale — with or without insurance
- Kids' Health Insurance (CHIP) 2026: Who Qualifies & Apply
Covers kids up to age 19 in families that earn too much for Medicaid
- Medicare vs Medicaid: Can You Have Both in 2026?
You can have Medicare and Medicaid at the same time. Medicare pays first, Medicaid pays last — and with full Medicaid your state pays the $202.90 Part B premium
- No-Cost Eye Exam 2026: EyeCare America Eligibility Checklist
A medical eye exam with no out-of-pocket cost, plus up to one year of follow-up care — and since October 2025 the age floor is 18, not 65
- Help Paying for Hearing Aids 2026: Options for Seniors
Medicare's hearing aid exclusion has two written exceptions, and the hearing exam every charity application asks for is covered once every 12 months without a doctor's order
- Help Paying for Prescriptions 2026: How NeedyMeds Works
A nonprofit database of programs that lower the cost of prescriptions, plus a no-cost discount card and a live helpline
- Medicare Prescription Help 2026: Extra Help Income Limits
A $0 Part D premium, a $0 deductible, and no drug costing more than $12.65
- Medicare Savings Program vs Extra Help: Can You Get Both?
Filing one application can start the other — but only in one direction
- Medicare Copay Help 2026: TotalAssist (PAN) vs HealthWell
PAN Foundation's copay funds now run under a new name, TotalAssist — and on September 28, 2026, a fund closed at one charity was sometimes open at the other
- How Much Money Can You Have for Medicaid? 2026 Asset Limits
Most adults and children on Medicaid face no savings test at all — but at 65+, the federal starting point is still $2,000, the same number since 1989
- Medicaid Denied? How to Appeal & What to Do Next (2026)
Federal rule caps your fair-hearing window at 90 days from the date on the denial notice — and if you were already covered and act within 10 days, your coverage can continue while you wait
- VA Aid and Attendance Benefits & Housebound Allowance 2026
Aid and Attendance raises a single veteran's yearly pension ceiling from $17,441 to $29,093 — Housebound raises it to $21,313, and VA will not pay both
- Hospital Bill Forgiveness 2026: Charity Care & How to Apply
Nonprofit hospitals must give you at least 240 days to apply after your first bill — and refund what you already paid if you qualify
- Help Paying Medicare Premiums 2026: Savings Programs (MSP)
Your state may pay the $202.90 Part B premium for you
- Free Medicare Help for Open Enrollment 2026: SHIP Checklist
SHIP counselors are not paid per enrollment — and Medicare Open Enrollment runs October 15 to December 7, 2026
- Emergency Medicaid 2026: Who Qualifies & How to Apply
Federal law says applicants for emergency-only coverage "need not present a social security number or document immigration status" (42 CFR 435.406(b))
- Can a 22-Year-Old Get Medicaid? 2026 Rules for Ages 18–26
If your parents don't claim you on their taxes, Medicaid counts only your own income — even if you live in their house (42 CFR 435.603)
- Medicaid Income Limits by State 2026: The 138% FPL Table
In expansion states, one adult can qualify with income up to about $1,835 a month in 2026 — and the same table applies in almost every expansion state, because the poverty line is federal
- Dementia Caregiver Help 2026: Alzheimer's 24/7 Helpline
One nonprofit number — 800-272-3900 — is answered 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, with interpreters for more than 200 languages
- Area Agency on Aging 2026: Eldercare Locator Call Checklist
One number — 1-800-677-1116 — reaches the Area Agency on Aging that covers your address, and federal rules bar any charge for that call
- Prescription Discount Cards 2026: Free vs Paid & Medicare
Medicare says discount card spending does not count toward your deductible or your $2,100 out-of-pocket cap — free cards and paid ones alike
- Help Paying Medical Copays 2026: HealthWell & How to Apply
On September 5, 2026, 31 of HealthWell's 93 disease funds were open and 62 were closed — which fund you need matters more than what you earn
- Medicaid Income Limits 2026: Who Qualifies & How to Apply
Adults up to 138% of the poverty level may qualify in expansion states
- PACE Program for Seniors 2026: Who Qualifies at Age 55
The age is 55, not 65 — and 42 CFR 460.186(d) bars a PACE organization from charging any premium to someone who has Medicaid