Nope I just have the medicare. . . best of luck

When I was on SSD I got along fine with medicare.

Jet, I'm struggling right now to find affordable private insurance too. My COBRA runs out at the end of the year. Even the State of Colorado option is really expensive for crappy coverage. Wish I had a magic answer for you. I'm very interested to hear everyone else's thoughts...

Tommy, I don't know why it is, but right now there is a 24 month gap from the time you start SSDI to the time you are eligible for Medicare. It really sucks! I'm glad to hear you had a good experience on Medicare, though, as I might be heading that direction in a few months!

I'm on SSDI and Medicare, also. The Medicare is fine for the docs, but the prescription drug plan sucks with its "doughnut hole". I had to go off of my Abilify (which worked great) because of it. It was just too expensive when I hit the coverage gap. I wish there was a good plan out there that covered prescriptions.

For my scripts medicare works just fine I pay 1.00 for everything besides lamictal which I pay 3.50 for (compared to the 300 I payed out of pocket for before I was approved)

I love Medicare and Medicaid. ArielleRose, if you are low income you can have both. I hope this is an option for you, because once you have both then the doughnut hole doesn't apply. Medicaid picks up on RX costs that Medicare Part D doesn't pay for.

I use UnitedHealthRX as my prescription D provider. My hightest copay - (which only lasts until about May) is $6.

I'm so glad I'm poor!! Sounds crazy but it's true. My hubby is unemployed right now, that's why we qualify for so much gov't aid.

We have public housing, I have the great medicare/medicaid coverage, and we also qualify for $107 per month of food stamps and an $80 per month voucher at a local food pantry, the states even have what's called a Circuit Breaker grant that give you a refund on rent/property taxes and in some states a great discount on your license plates. Also, it provides prescription drug discount cards for yourself and your spouse - if your disabled and low income.

IF anyone needs help/advice about getting the most aid possible, please mesasge me. I know a lot after about 5 years on "welfare."

Jet, I'm looking into my options around COBRA and ran across this information. It may be of interest as it looks like there are some subsidies for COBRA for people who involuntarily loose their jobs between a certain time window.... here it is:

If you lost your group health plan because of involuntary termination of employment that occurred between September 1, 2008 and December 31, 2009, you may be eligible for a federal tax credit that can help you pay for your COBRA premiums for up to nine months. This tax credit was created as part of The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) and covers 65% of the your COBRA premium. For more information call the Employee Benefits Security Administration at the United State Department of Labor at (866) 444-3272 or visit the COBRA/AARA information center at http://www.dol.gov/ebsa/cobra.html. Information about the COBRA tax credit is also available from the IRS at http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=204505,00.html and Department of Health And Human Services at http://www.cms.hhs.gov/COBRAContinuationofCov/.

If you are eligible for the Health Coverage Tax Credit (HCTC), the federal government will pay 80% of your COBRA premium. (see Financial Assistance)

Call the Department of Labor at (866) 444-3272 to find out if other temporary COBRA subsidies are available to you.

I found it at this website: http://healthinsuranceinfo.net/getinsured/colorado/individual-health-plans/cobra-and-state-continuation-coverage/

My income is low enough that I have medicaid and medicare. On medicaid my prescriptions were only $3. Now that I have been on disability for 2 years, medicare has kicked in. My regular prescriptions are $6 a month and the generics are $2.40. There is no doughnut hole because I have both. Check and see if your income is low enough for medicaid.

Congrats on SSD. I've been trying and been denied twice. Waiting for next step now.
Good luck with everything. Smiles to you....

My only form of income is child support of $579/month. Is that low enough? I know it varies from State to State however I was told when trying to get Medicaid that because I receive Child Support of ANY amount I was automatically disqualified. Now, this was in 2007. I should look into it again.

Coley according to Federal income guidelines I make under poverty level for just one persson. My only source of income is from SSD and I get 691 a month so betting here you are way under poverty level at 579 a month

I just got approved for SSD and thought you got medicare in a year, is it really 2 years?

paf: Here is the link to the medicare website

http://www.medicare.gov/

Halfway down the page in the right hand column is the link to "FInd out if you are eligible for Medicare...."

Once you click on it, it brings up the eligibility tool. You can walk through the questions in a minute or so. At the end it will tell you when you are eligible.

bump :)