Hello. I have a family member who is 67 years old and has been on disability for about 40 years due to severe rheumatoid arthritis. Her husband is a few years older and between the two of them there income is $2,000 a month. She worked briefly as a civil servant and has been paying nearly $700 a month for health care insurance. I know there has to be something cheaper for her. She said she does not qualify for the Affordable Healthcare Act. Her home is not handicap accessible and is in dire need of repair. She lives in Indiana. Does anyone have any suggestions. She even went to the welfare office and they told her there was nothing they could do because they earn too much money. Too much money? What are we missing here? They are living on about $1,200 a month after insurance payments.
You can also apply for Medicaid. That pays the medical bills that Medicare doesn't pay.
Check your local county and state's elder care programs to see what else they can get ... food, utility support (we have lower electric bills b/c we're seniors, and are also on a non-shutoff program). Contact senior centers social workers and ask about other programs. Some senior centers have more extensive outreach programs, so you may have to call a few (try the more upscale areas) before finding one that have a broader program of assistance. (Some in my area primarily plan bingo games and casino trips.)
Check out food pantries such as Forgotten Harvest. Check out the community in which they live to see if it gets HUD grants for emergency home repairs. Habitat for Humanity also helps in this area, as do some Methodist churches in some areas.
They can also get clothes and other household items from Salvation Army. I was a bit shocked when I learned that some relatives had been shopping there for years, but when I checked I out, I found a LOT of name brand, high end clothes, some of which would have originally been sold at places like Macy's. And they were a fraction of what the original cost might have been, and in good condition as well.