Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008

The Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 — usually called MIPPA — provides grants to states and tribes. MIPPA funds are used for outreach and as financial assistance to help eligible Medicare beneficiaries reduce their premiums and deductibles.

Terry Turner, writer and researcher for RetireGuide
  • Written by
    Terry Turner

    Terry Turner

    Senior Financial Writer and Financial Wellness Facilitator

    Terry Turner has more than 35 years of journalism experience, including covering benefits, spending and congressional action on federal programs such as Social Security and Medicare. He is a Certified Financial Wellness Facilitator through the National Wellness Institute and the Foundation for Financial Wellness and a member of the Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education (AFCPE®).

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    Lee Williams

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    Lee Williams is a professional writer, editor and content strategist with 10 years of professional experience working for global and nationally recognized brands. He has contributed to Forbes, The Huffington Post, SUCCESS Magazine, AskMen.com, Electric Literature and The Wall Street Journal. His career also includes ghostwriting for Fortune 500 CEOs and published authors.

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  • Published: February 15, 2021
  • Updated: March 1, 2023
  • 3 min read time
  • This page features 8 Cited Research Articles
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APA Turner, T. (2023, March 1). Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008. RetireGuide.com. Retrieved October 3, 2023, from https://www.retireguide.com/medicare/basics/history/mippa/

MLA Turner, Terry. "Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008." RetireGuide.com, 1 Mar 2023, https://www.retireguide.com/medicare/basics/history/mippa/.

Chicago Turner, Terry. "Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008." RetireGuide.com. Last modified March 1, 2023. https://www.retireguide.com/medicare/basics/history/mippa/.

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What Is MIPPA?

MIPPA provides resources to help people with limited income and assets pay for Medicare.

Medicare can be expensive for those with limited resources. The average beneficiary on Medicare spent $6,168 on premiums and other out of pocket expenses in 2018, according to an analysis by AARP. It also found that one in 10 spent at least $10,816.

MIPPA allocates federal grants to the states, the District of Columbia and federally recognized tribes. The allocations are administered by the federal Administration for Community Living.

The MIPPA grants provide targeted funding to agencies and organizations in each state or tribe that enroll eligible Medicare beneficiaries in financial assistance through MIPPA.

MIPPA Grantee Agencies and Organizations
  • State Health Insurance Assistance Programs (SHIP)
  • Area Agencies on Aging (AAA)
  • Aging and Disability Resource Centers (ADRC)

The outreach and assistance includes focused efforts to target people eligible for MIPPA assistance including tribal elders and others living in rural areas.

Medicare Benefits and MIPPA

MIPPA has provided more than five billion dollars in benefits to Medicare enrollees since 2009, according to the National Council on Aging. And more than 1.8 million people have applied for MIPPA assistance in that time.

Grantee organizations help eligible beneficiaries apply for two specific assistance programs to help them pay Medicare costs.

MIPPA Assistance Programs
LIS/Extra Help
Medicare Part D Extra Help/Low-Income Subsidy helps lower prescription drug costs. It provides assistance to help pay your Medicare Part D prescription drug plan premium, deductible and out of pocket costs for prescriptions. It’s administered by the Social Security Administration.
Medicare Savings Programs
Medicare Savings Programs — or MSPs — help pay your Medicare Part A and Part B deductibles, copayments and coinsurance for people who qualify. MSPs offer four levels of benefits depending on your eligibility. Medicare Savings Programs are administered by your state Medicaid program.

MIPPA grantee organizations will also help Medicare beneficiaries with limited income and resources to enroll in other assistance programs.

Other Assistance Programs MIPPA Beneficiaries May Qualify For
  • Medicaid
  • Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) – also known as Food Stamps
  • Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
  • State Pharmaceutical Assistance Program (SPAP) where available
  • Supplemental Security Income (SSI)

Grantee organizations also provide outreach — or community education programs — about Medicare Preventive Services. These services include Medicare-covered exams and screenings including the Welcome to Medicare preventive visit and yearly wellness visit as well as heart and cancer screenings and annual flu shots.

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MIPPA and Your Access to the Medicare Savings Program

Passage of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 led relatively quickly to expanded access to Medicare Savings Programs, according to the nonprofit Center for Medicare Advocacy.

Medicare Savings Program enrollment has increased from 7.7 million enrollees in 2007 — the year before MIPPA became law — to 10.97 million in 2019, according to data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

The Four Types of Medicare Savings Programs
  • Qualified Disabled and Working Individuals (QDWI) Program
  • Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) Program
  • Qualifying Individual (QI) Program
  • Specified Low-Income Medicare Beneficiary (SLMB) Program

Each MSP has its own specific eligibility criteria, but all require that you live in the United States, be 65 or older and receive Social Security disability benefits or meet other income and limited resources requirements.

Last Modified: March 1, 2023

8 Cited Research Articles

  1. Noel-Miller, C. (2021, December 15). Medicare Beneficiaries’ Out-of-Pocket Spending for Health Care. Retreived from https://www.aarp.org/ppi/info-2020/medicare-beneficiaries-out-of-pocket-spending-for-health-care.html
  2. Administration for Community Living. (2021, January 22). Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers (MIPPA). Retrieved from https://acl.gov/programs/connecting-people-services/medicare-improvements-patients-and
  3. Popham, L. (2020). Medicare-Medicaid Dual Eligible Enrollees, 2007 - December 2019 by County; Table - Medicare Savings Program Enrollment. Retrieved from https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/lauren.popham/viz/Medicare-MedicaidDualEligibleEnrollmentbyCounty2007-December2019/Story1?publish=yes
  4. Center for Medicare Advocacy. (2013, July 11). The Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act: Improving Enrollment in the Medicare Savings Program Five Years Later. Retrieved from https://medicareadvocacy.org/the-medicare-improvements-for-patients-and-providers-act-improving-enrollment-in-the-medicare-savings-program-five-years-later/
  5. National Council on Aging. (n.d.). Medicare Savings Program Enrollment Visualization. Retrieved from https://www.ncoa.org/economic-security/benefits/visualizations/medicare-savings-program-visualization/
  6. National Council on Aging. (n.d.). Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA). Retrieved from https://www.ncoa.org/article/mippa
  7. National Association of Area Agencies on Aging. (n.d.). Low-Income Outreach and Enrollment (MIPPA). Retrieved from https://www.ncoa.org/article/mippa
  8. U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. (n.d.). Medicare Savings Programs. Retrieved from https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/help/medicare-savings-programs