What is SHIP?
The State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) provides free, local, in-depth and objective insurance counseling and assistance to Medicare-eligible individuals, their families and caregivers.
SHIP is a statewide program administered by the New Jersey Department of Human Services with financial assistance through a grant from the U.S. Administration for Community Living.
How can SHIP help?
Our SHIP counselors can guide you through the process and help you avoid making any expensive errors.
Contact SHIP to find out about assistance programs you or your loved one might be eligible for.
Medicare can be complicated – contact us for answers.
Contact SHIP for local, one-on-one assistance with reviewing health or prescription drug plan options.
Contact SHIP for assistance.
Our SHIP counselors can explain how Medicare works with supplemental policies, retiree coverage, Medicaid and other insurances.
FAQ’s
Many of our counselors are dedicated volunteers who undergo 6 days of training and regular updates to make sure they can answer your questions – why not hear from some of them yourself on this video Who are NJ SHIP Counselors?
Check out this simple guide to Understanding Your Medicare Choices
Follow these simple instructions on How to Create a MY Medicare Account
October 15th through December 7th
Programs to help with Medicare costs
BEC
Benefits Enrollment Centers (BECs) help low-income Medicare beneficiaries enroll in all of the benefits they may be missing.
The BECs focus on connecting Medicare beneficiaries with limited incomes to these core benefits:
- Medicare Part D Extra Help/Low-Income Subsidy (LIS)
- Medicare Savings Programs
- Medicaid
- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP – formerly known as Food Stamps)
- Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program
BECs also help seniors and younger adults with disabilities to apply for other programs, such as Supplemental Security Income, State Pharmaceutical Assistance Programs, local transportation assistance, tax relief, and more.
BECs are supported with funding from the Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act (MIPPA), administered through the U.S. Administration for Community Living (ACL). The National Council on Aging (NCOA) has been the MIPPA Resource Center supporting the creation of BECs since 2009.
If your monthly income is below $3,200 and you are single, or jointly $3,735 if you are married, you are likely eligible for assistance with prescriptions costs and more.
The SHIP team can help you in understanding the eligibility guidelines and in applying for these programs using the NJ Save application.
Find out more about NJ Save here: https://www.state.nj.us/humanservices/doas/services/njsave/
Contact us
Call or text us at 609-273-0588, para Espanol 609.695.6274 | Email: kott@chsofnj.org
Or complete the below registration to get connected with a SHIP counselor
The State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) is a statewide program administered by the New Jersey Department of Human Services with financial assistance through a grant from the U.S. Administration for Community Living (ACL).