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A Holiday Message from MD Benefits Counseling Network

Dec 23, 2021

It may not exactly feel like the most wonderful time of the year as we deal with another upsurge of the still deadly, and now rather tedious, Covid 19, but here we are. Despite all that we’re dealing with, we at MDBCN would like to wish one and all the very best of...

1619(B) Threshold for 2022 Announced

Dec 17, 2021

Unlike the Cost of Living Adjustments (COLA) there is little uniformity in when the new year’s 1619(b) thresholds are published, but this year Social Security have jumped the gun and have already posted the 1619(b) thresholds for 2022. Continued Medicaid Eligibility...

Child Tax Credit Now Available to More Families

Dec 13, 2021

One aspect of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 was the expansion of Child Tax Credit, which meant that more families with children were eligible to receive monthly funds. Some months on from the implementation of the new funding there are likely to be many...

Need Help Accessing Local Services? Social Security Have the Answers

Dec 3, 2021

The Social Security Administration has been touting its on-line services for quite some time now and with a good level of determination as regular readers of their weekly blog would not have failed to notice. One development in recent months was the creation of the...

Social Security Offices May Re-open in January

Nov 29, 2021

The Social Security Administration recently revealed a plan to require their staff to return to offices around the country starting as early as January 3 next year. The timing of the plan may turn out to be rather unfortunate as it was unveiled shortly before the...

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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...