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Trump announces $90 payments for seniors on Medicare
WBAL-TV • • nation
Key Points:
- President Donald Trump announced $90 payments to over 20 million seniors to help cover Medicare premiums, to be distributed in October ahead of the Nov. 3 midterm elections.
- The payments will come from the Medicare Improvement Fund, a flexible fund established by Congress in 2008 to improve Medicare operations and provider payments.
- Eligible recipients are Medicare Part B enrollees living in the U.S. who are not receiving Medicaid premium assistance or paying income-adjusted premiums; those on Medicare Advantage plans are excluded.
- Previous administrations have not used the Medicare Improvement Fund for direct payments to beneficiaries, though Congress has redirected funds for other priorities, including the Affordable Care Act.
- The announcement follows Trump’s earlier promises of rebate checks for Affordable Care Act enrollees and a $5,000 payment pledge to all American adults if Republicans retain Congress, a plan that could cost over $1 trillion and increase the deficit.
