Hawaii Medicare Savings Program 2026: QMB, SLMB and QI Limits

The Hawaii Medicare Savings Program pays your Medicare Part B premium — $202.90 a month in 2026 — and at the top level pays your deductibles and copays too. It is run by Hawaii Medicaid, not by Medicare, and roughly one in three people who qualify never apply. This Hawaii medicare savings program guide gives the 2026 limits as Hawaii applies them, the asset rule, how it triggers Part D Extra Help, and where to apply.

Limits below are from the National Council on Aging’s 2026 table built on the federal poverty guidelines, checked against Hawaii’s own rules; they reset each spring when the new guidelines take effect.

Hawaii Medicare Savings Program at a Glance (2026)

The Three Levels of the Hawaii Medicare Savings Program

• QMB (Qualified Medicare Beneficiary): pays the Part A and Part B premiums and the deductibles, coinsurance and copays. Providers who take Medicare may not bill a QMB enrollee for Medicare cost-sharing at all.
• SLMB (Specified Low-Income Medicare Beneficiary): pays the Part B premium only.
• QI (Qualifying Individual): also pays the Part B premium only, with a slightly higher income limit; funding is capped and first-come, first-served each year.

Hawaii labels: Hawaii uses the standard federal names, and the Med-QUEST program page lists them as QMB (which Med-QUEST spells out as Qualified Medicaid Beneficiaries, elsewhere Qualified Medicare Beneficiary), SLMB (Specified Low-Income Medicare Beneficiaries), and QI (Qualifying Individuals).. Whatever the name, one application covers all three; the office places you at the highest level you qualify for.

Hawaii Medicare Savings Program Income and Asset Limits

The federal floors for a single person in 2026 are $1,350 a month for QMB, $1,616 for SLMB and $1,816 for QI, each including a $20 disregard. Hawaii’s figures: QMB $1,550 / SLMB $1,856 / QI $2,086 (single).

Assets: Federal ($9,950 single / $14,910 couple). The home, one vehicle, household goods and burial funds up to $1,500 do not count.

Hawaii counts Medicare Savings Program income under the aged, blind, and disabled rules rather than the tax-based MAGI rules used for younger adults, so the state follows Supplemental Security Income methodology. That means Med-QUEST looks at Social Security, pensions, wages, and similar regular income, then applies the standard general and earned income disregards before comparing the result to the limit.

A married applicant living with a spouse is generally counted as a couple, so the spouse’s income is included. The exact disregard figures are UNVERIFIED here.

Hawaii does allow some coverage for bills incurred before the application date, but Med-QUEST limits it more tightly than many states because of its Section 1115 demonstration. The state’s published material describes a short retroactive window for most applicants, with a longer window reserved for people who are applying for long-term care services.

Because the exact number of days or months is a figure, it is UNVERIFIED in this block; ask the Med-QUEST worker to confirm the window that applies before you pay any old Medicare bills yourself.

The QMB Billing Protection Most People Never Use

Federal law forbids any provider who accepts Medicare from billing a QMB enrollee for Medicare deductibles, coinsurance or copays. If a bill arrives, the enrollee does not owe it. Show the QMB card, cite the rule, and if it continues report it to 1-800-MEDICARE or the Hawaii SHIP. This one protection is worth more than the premium for anyone with regular hospital or specialist care.

Hawaii Medicare Savings Program and Part D Extra Help

Once Med-QUEST approves you for QMB, SLMB, or QI, Hawaii reports that enrollment to the Social Security Administration, and you are automatically deemed eligible for the Medicare Part D Low-Income Subsidy, commonly called Extra Help. You do not have to file a separate Extra Help application, and Social Security mails a deeming notice confirming it.

The reverse also helps: when you apply to Social Security for Extra Help, that agency forwards your information to Med-QUEST as a Medicare Savings Program referral, which the state then processes as an application.

Hawaii Prescription Help Beyond Medicare

NONE. — Hawaii runs its own drug-cost program for seniors alongside Extra Help. Ask The application is handled by Hawaii Medicaid, not by Medicare or Social Security. or the SHIP whether you qualify for both.

How to Apply for the Hawaii Medicare Savings Program

Where: The application is handled by Hawaii Medicaid, not by Medicare or Social Security. — application. Free help: Hawaii’s State Health Insurance Assistance Program is called Hawaii SHIP, previously known as Sage PLUS, and it is administered by the Executive Office on Aging within the Hawaii State Department of Health..

Bring the Medicare card, proof of all income, and — in states with an asset test — bank statements. A decision usually takes a few weeks; the Part B premium refund appears as a larger Social Security deposit once the change reaches Social Security.

Who Typically Qualifies for the Hawaii Medicare Savings Program

A widow living on one Social Security check. A retired couple whose combined income is modest once one pension stopped. A person under 65 on Medicare through disability. Anyone who receives Supplemental Security Income already qualifies at the top level. Homeowners qualify as easily as renters, because the home is never counted, and in the states without an asset test savings are not counted either.

The Hawaii Medicare Savings Program Calendar

New federal poverty guidelines are published in January or February; states adopt the new Hawaii medicare savings program limits in the weeks after, usually by March or April. A person who was just over the limit in December may be under it in April without their income changing. The Part B premium itself changes each January, so the value of the program rises with it. QI funding is allocated by calendar year and can run out; apply early rather than late.

If the Hawaii Medicare Savings Program Application Is Denied

The denial notice states the reason and the deadline to ask for a hearing. The three fixable reasons are missing proof of income, income counted that should have been excluded, and — in asset-test states — a burial fund or life insurance that should not have been counted. Fix the reason and reapply; nothing prevents a second application. The state SHIP will review a denial for free.

The Hawaii Medicare Savings Program Versus Full Medicaid

The program pays Medicare costs; it does not make you a Medicaid patient. You keep your doctors, your Medicare card and your plan. Full Medicaid, with its lower income limit, adds coverage Medicare does not have — long-term care above all. Many people qualify for the Hawaii medicare savings program first and for full Medicaid only later, when care needs and costs rise. The two applications go to the same office.

What to Do Next

If you qualify for a Hawaii medicare savings program, apply before you shop for plans: the premium help changes which Medigap or Advantage plan makes sense. Your SHIP counselor can do both in one visit.

Official Sources

• Hawaii Medicare Savings Programs
• The application is handled by Hawaii Medicaid, not by Medicare or Social Security.
• Medicaid.gov spousal impoverishment standards: medicaid.gov
• Medicare.gov Medicare Savings Programs: medicare.gov

This Hawaii medicare savings program guide was checked against the state Medicaid agency, CMS and the statute cited above in September 2026. Figures reset on their own calendars (most on January 1); if a number here disagrees with a notice you received, the notice wins — and please tell us. This page is general information, not legal, financial or medical advice.

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