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BEST Practices: SSA Unveils Reference Guide on Benefits Eligibility

May 27, 2022

In a recent announcement Social Security has drawn our attention to an on-line guide for anyone with limited means who’s looking to see what benefits they may qualify for. The Benefits Eligibility Screening Tool (BEST), which can be accessed here Welcome to SSA BEST |...

Medicare Website Now More User-Friendly

May 24, 2022

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have been working on improvements to their www.medicare.gov website in the past year and have given it something of a new look. Reportedly having listened to feedback from those that visit the site the updates are...

CMS Effectively Extends Medicare General Enrollment Period to the End of 2022

May 13, 2022

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) had acknowledged that many Medicare beneficiaries may not have been able to enroll or disenroll in Medicare Part B and premium Part A plans during the normal General Enrollment Period owing to issues over being able...

Job Alert: SOAR Specialist Needed

May 6, 2022

The SSI/SSDI Outreach Access and Recovery (SOAR) Initiative has been helping individuals who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness, negotiate the complicated and arduous process of applying for SSI and SSDI benefits. SOAR specialists have established an expedited...

Change in Survivor’s Benefits Rules Grants Eligibility to Same-sex Partners

Apr 29, 2022

As the result of two class action lawsuits that were successfully brought by the surviving partners of same-sex relationships Social Security has changed its policy on eligibility for Survivor's Benefits. Helen Thornton was in a long-term relationship with her...

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SNAP Tackles Pop: States Ban Food Stamp Purchases of Soda and Candy

There have always been restrictions on what you can buy with food stamps, now dubbed the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP (a godsend to sub-editors everywhere). The simple, if perhaps occasionally dubious, pleasures that alcoholic beverages provide...

2026’s 1619(b) Thresholds Are Out!

Unlike many annual changes in the benefits world, which are announced on a fairly rigid schedule, recent history has shown that we can never quite be sure when the new thresholds for 1619(b) are going to be announced. Fortunately, this year there hasn’t been much of a...

Health Check: Changes to Medicaid in Maryland

The new year is an obvious time to make changes if that’s what you’re going to do and it might seem that if things are going to be different for Medicaid beneficiaries now would be the time to learn what’s new. Oddly enough, even though there are changes afoot,...

What’s New? Update on 2026 Benefits Changes

Now that we have to admit that the holidays are truly over and we're embedded in the new year, for better or for worse, it's worth having a quick look over the new annual figures that will affect those of us who receive federal benefits. By now everyone who receives...

Happy Holidays from MDBCN to You!

Another year comes to another close and although we can hardly look back on 12 months of love, peace, and harmony we can always hope for that in the future. Whatever may come to pass, we at the Maryland Benefits Counseling Network will continue to endeavor to keep you...

Getting Better: ABLE Changes for 2026

Back in 2022 Congress passed a bill that is about to go into effect. The ABLE Age Adjustment Act decreed that as of January 2026 the age threshold for Achieving Better Life Experience (ABLE) accounts would increase from 26 to 46. The ABLE Act has been around for more...

A Bitter Pill: Medicare Costs in 2026

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently announced the 2026 premium and deductible figures. It’s a familiar story, as those costs are up again. The standard Medicare Part B premium will raise eyebrows and blood pressure as it increases by $17.90 a...

From the Horse’s Mouth: SSA Commissioner Delivers 2025 Fiscal Report

Gues what? It’s all good. On November 20 Frank Bisignano, Social Security’s Commissioner, published his letter to Congress detailing the agency’s achievements in 2025. The letter, which you can read in full here (Commissioner Letter to Congress: Year in Review) begins...

SNAP’s Back: Federal Food Stamp Payments to Resume

After the longest shutdown in its 249-year history the US government officially re-opened on Wednesday when its president signed a bill allowing funding until January 30 next year. While this would certainly appear to be only a temporary easing of the situation it...

Forking Out: SNAP Updates and Maryland’s Response

It is now widely known that it is forty-two million Americans who receive SNAP benefits, still also known as food stamps. They remain at the mercy of a government, which has remained shut down for thirty-seven days at the time of writing, and shows no sign of opening...