Descriptive Transcript of Video: “Jamie & Linda’s Medicare Affordability Story”
[Opening screen with picture of Jamie and text: Jamie & Linda’s story. Vermont Legal Aid logo and text: Medicare Affordability. “I’m having to put groceries on the credit card now.”]
[Text: Jamie and Linda lost the Medicare Savings Program in 2023. They are $18 over the income limit.]
Jamie says: Because of being dropped from the..umm QI -1 program, the medical savings program. That cost us $330 per month for the both of us.
[Text: Jamie and Linda are struggling to afford health care and other basic living expenses.]
With the rent increase we had for '23, March 1st. That was $135 more a month.
And with everything else as far as economics wise groceries and things like that.
And medicines and things.
That's put us way in the hole, awful hole.
So stuff now we get we have to use a credit card.
[Text: They had to put things like groceries and dental bills on their credit card. Linda’s dental bills alone were $5,000 - $6,000.]
She [Linda] had a lot of problems with her teeth because of the medicines she takes.
She's had to go to the dentist.
And the dentist charges, which were a lot more than the food naturally. I think we are up $6,000 in just dentist bills. And still going.
[Closing screen with the Vermont Legal Aid logo and text: Vermont can and should increase the income limit for the Medicare Savings Program. Support H.118 / S.61]
End of transcript.