Medicare Savings Programs in Florida: QMB, SLMB and QI in 2026

The three Medicare Savings Programs are Medicaid coverage groups run by the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF). They pay Medicare costs. They don't provide full Medicaid coverage.

QMB (Qualified Medicare Beneficiary). QMB pays Medicare premiums, coinsurance and deductibles, including the full Medicare coinsurance for a covered nursing home stay (ESS Policy Manual 2040.0817). Medicare providers also can't bill a QMB member for Medicare-covered services, including deductibles, coinsurance and copays (Medicare.gov; 42 U.S.C. 1396a(n)(3)(B)). SLMB (Specified Low-Income Medicare Beneficiary). SLMB pays the Part B premium only (ESS Policy Manual 2040.0818). QI (Qualifying Individual). QI also pays the Part B premium. It runs on a yearly federal allotment, so it isn't an open entitlement (ESS Policy Manual 2040.0819). States approve QI applications first-come, first-served, with priority for people who had QI the year before, and you have to reapply each year (Medicare.gov).

All three require enrollment in Medicare Part A, citizenship or qualified noncitizen status, and applying for any other benefits you may be entitled to (ESS Policy Manual 2040.0817–2040.0819). QI has one more condition: you can't qualify for any other Medicaid group except Medically Needy (ESS Policy Manual 2040.0819).

DCF publishes the limits on its own chart, Appendix A-9.1, which is separate from the long-term care chart. The current column took effect in April 2026 (DCF Appendix A-9.1):

Program Share of poverty level One person Couple QMB up to 100% $1,330 $1,804 SLMB over 100% to 120% $1,596 $2,164 QI over 120% to 135% $1,796 $2,435

These limits apply to countable income, not gross income. For these groups, DCF adds up unearned income, subtracts the allowed deductions, adds earned income after its exclusions, and then compares the total to the A-9.1 chart (ESS Policy Manual 2640.0126). The standard deduction is $20, and earned income gets a further $65 plus half of what's left (DCF Appendix A-9). Because of the $20 deduction, a person whose only income is Social Security can usually have about $20 more in gross income than the chart shows.

The chart also includes an interim column effective January 2026 with slightly different numbers. Use the April 2026 column for current applications (DCF Appendix A-9.1).

The asset limit for QMB, SLMB and QI is three times the SSI resource limit, raised each year for inflation (ESS Policy Manual 1640.0200). In 2026 that comes to $9,950 for one person and $14,910 for a couple (DCF Appendix A-9.1). That is much higher than the $2,000 limit for nursing home Medicaid or the $5,000 limit for MEDS-AD (ESS Policy Manual 1640.0200).

DCF uses the same SSI-related asset rules it uses for its other programs. In general, the home you live in and one car don't count. Bank accounts, CDs, stocks and the cash value of some life insurance do. If you aren't sure whether something counts, our guide to exempt assets walks through the list. A spouse's retirement account is excluded for these programs, though any payments the spouse receives from it are counted as income (ESS Policy Manual 1640.0505.05).

MEDS-AD is Florida's full Medicaid group for aged and disabled people with income at or below 88% of the poverty level (ESS Policy Manual 2040.0813.01). In 2026 that's $1,171 for one person and $1,588 for a couple, with assets up to $5,000 and $6,000 (DCF Appendix A-9).

Many families miss one rule. In Florida, a person who has Medicare qualifies for MEDS-AD only if they are also receiving institutional care, hospice, or home and community-based services, such as the long-term care waiver or PACE (ESS Policy Manual 2040.0813.03). That means most Medicare beneficiaries living at home with low incomes end up in QMB, not MEDS-AD. Some can also use Medically Needy, which has a monthly share of cost based on an income standard of $180 for one person (DCF Appendix A-9).

If someone later needs a nursing home or in-home long-term care, the rules change. Our nursing home admission guide and Miller trust guide cover those.

Extra Help, also called the Low-Income Subsidy, lowers Part D premiums, deductibles and copays. Anyone who gets full Medicaid, a Medicare Savings Program or SSI gets it automatically (Medicare.gov). For people in an MSP, the 2026 cap is $12.65 for each covered drug (Medicare.gov).

People who earn too much for QI can still apply to Social Security for Extra Help on its own. The 2026 limits are $23,940 a year in income and $18,090 in resources for one person, or $32,460 and $36,100 for a married couple (Medicare.gov). When you apply for Extra Help, Social Security can send your information to DCF, with your consent, and that starts a Medicare Savings Program application (42 U.S.C. 1320b-14(c)(3)). You can apply online or call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 (SSA).

Under federal law, QMB starts with services furnished after the end of the month in which you're approved (42 U.S.C. 1396a(e)(8)). DCF's manual says there is no retroactive coverage for QMB. It also limits retroactive Medicaid in general to children and pregnant women (ESS Policy Manual 2040.0812). In practice, every month you wait is a month you don't get back, so apply as soon as you think you might qualify.

Many people hold back because they're worried about estate recovery. Federal law leaves Medicare cost-sharing paid under these programs out of the costs a state may recover from an estate (42 U.S.C. 1396p(b)(1)(B)(ii)). For more on what Florida does recover, see our estate recovery guide.