Montgomery, AL – About 11,250 low-income Alabama residents will no longer have to pay extra money every month for Medicare Part B coverage.
State officials had earlier said about 15,500 Alabama residents would soon have to pay an extra $96 a month because federal funding had been cut for a program that was paying the premiums for low income Medicare Part B recipients.
Medicare Part B covers such medical expenses as doctor visits, lab tests and some prescription drugs.
State Medicaid Commissioner Carol Steckel said Tuesday the state had received additional federal funds to allow most recipients to continue in the program.
Steckel said Alabama's congressional delegation helped the state receive the extra money.
(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)