Medicare in New Hampshire runs on federal rules, and free, unbiased ServiceLink counseling makes it easier to compare plans and find help paying. This guide covers Medicare in New Hampshire for 2026: what it costs, the plan choices available here, and how to get help paying.,

In This Guide

About these numbers: The premiums and deductibles below come from CMS for calendar year 2026, effective January 1. Medicare costs change every year. For the most current figures, contact Medicare at 1-800-633-4227 (1-800-MEDICARE) or NH ServiceLink at 1-866-634-9412.

Original Medicare: Parts A and B

Original Medicare is run directly by the federal government and comes in two parts. The mechanics and costs are identical in New Hampshire and every other state.

Part A (Hospital Insurance)

Part A covers inpatient hospital stays, limited skilled nursing facility care, hospice, and some home health care.

Cost Amount
Monthly premium $0 for most people (40+ quarters of work history)
Hospital deductible $1,736 per benefit period
Hospital coinsurance, days 61-90 $434 per day
Lifetime reserve days $868 per day
SNF coinsurance, days 21-100 $217 per day

The hospital deductible rose $60 from 2025, to $1,736 per benefit period. A benefit period starts the day you're admitted and ends 60 days after you leave. Get readmitted after that, and the deductible applies again.

Part B (Medical Insurance)

Part B covers doctor visits, outpatient care, preventive services, durable medical equipment, and mental health care. It doesn't cover routine dental, vision, or hearing.

Part B is technically optional, but nearly everyone signs up. Delay past your enrollment window without other creditable coverage and you'll owe a late penalty of 10% for every 12 months you could have had it, for as long as you keep Part B.

Medicare Advantage in New Hampshire (Part C)

Medicare Advantage plans are an alternative to Original Medicare, sold by private insurers. They cover everything Parts A and B do, except hospice, which Original Medicare keeps covering. Most bundle in Part D drug coverage along with extras like dental, vision, and hearing.

New Hampshire is a small state with a modest Medicare Advantage market. The Manchester, Nashua, and Concord metro areas generally offer a wider range of plans than rural communities, particularly in the North Country and western regions where fewer plan contracts operate. Plan options, networks, and prices change every year and differ by county, so compare what's actually available at your address before you decide.

How These Plans Work

Use the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov to compare plans by ZIP code. Enter your doctors and prescriptions and it shows which plans cover them and your estimated cost. If you want help reading the results, a ServiceLink SHIP counselor will go through them with you for free.

Medicare Part D: Prescription Drugs

Part D covers outpatient prescription drugs. You can get it as a standalone plan paired with Original Medicare, or built into a Medicare Advantage plan.

The Inflation Reduction Act eliminated the old coverage gap, the donut hole, so that higher-cost middle stage is gone. Part D now moves through three phases:

  1. Deductible: you pay full price until you meet your plan's deductible (up to $615 in 2026).
  2. Initial coverage: you pay copays or coinsurance while your plan and drug makers cover the rest.
  3. Catastrophic: once your out-of-pocket spending reaches $2,100, you pay $0 for covered drugs the rest of the year.

That $2,100 cap is the number that matters most in Part D. It was $2,000 in 2025 and rises with drug-spending growth. Standalone Part D premiums are set by private carriers and vary widely; the 2026 projected average runs roughly $40 to $50 a month. Every plan also has to offer the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan, which lets you spread your out-of-pocket drug costs into capped monthly payments across the year instead of paying in full at the pharmacy. People who qualify for Extra Help often pay much less, sometimes nothing.

Not sure which Part D plan fits your prescriptions? Chat with Brevy's care navigator at brevy.com.

Medigap in New Hampshire

Medigap policies are sold by private insurers to fill the gaps in Original Medicare: the deductibles, coinsurance, and copays. They work only with Original Medicare, never with Medicare Advantage.

New Hampshire offers the federally standardized plans, labeled A through N, regulated by the New Hampshire Insurance Department. Plans C and F are closed to anyone who became Medicare-eligible on or after January 1, 2020. Plan G is the popular choice for people newly eligible: it covers the Part A deductible, Part A and Part B coinsurance, and skilled nursing coinsurance, leaving only the $283 Part B deductible on you.,

Your strongest opening is the federal Medigap Open Enrollment Period, the six months that begin when you're 65 and enrolled in Part B. During that window an insurer must sell you any plan at the standard rate regardless of your health. Outside it, New Hampshire insurers may use medical underwriting, meaning they can review your health, charge more, or decline you.

New Hampshire has no annual birthday rule or other state-created window that lets you switch Medigap plans without health questions after the initial enrollment period closes. The choice you make in those first six months carries real weight. If you think you might ever want Medigap, the safest time to buy is during that initial window.

Medigap or Medicare Advantage?

You can't hold both. Choose Medigap and you stay on Original Medicare with the freedom to see any provider who accepts Medicare nationwide, at a higher monthly premium. Choose Medicare Advantage and you trade some of that freedom for a network and a lower upfront cost. For a side-by-side look at the trade-off, see our guide to Original Medicare vs. Medicare Advantage.

Help Paying for Medicare in New Hampshire

If you're on a fixed income, two programs can cut your Medicare costs sharply.

Medicare Savings Programs

New Hampshire administers its Medicare Savings Programs through the NH Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), under the Medicare Beneficiaries Savings Program. New Hampshire uses the standard federal income tiers but applies its own SLMB135 label for the third tier (what the federal program calls Qualifying Individual, or QI).

NH label Federal name Individual Couple What it pays
QMB QMB Up to about $1,350 Up to about $1,824 Part A and B premiums, deductibles, coinsurance
SLMB SLMB Up to about $1,616 Up to about $2,184 Part B premium
SLMB135 QI Up to about $1,816 Up to about $2,455 Part B premium

QMB is the most generous, covering your Part B premium plus your deductibles and coinsurance. Federal law bars providers from billing a QMB enrollee for that Medicare cost-sharing. For all three programs the 2026 resource limit is $9,950 for one person and $14,910 for a couple. The income figures are tied to the Federal Poverty Level and update each year. Apply through NH DHHS, and enrolling in any of these programs automatically qualifies you for Extra Help.

Extra Help for Part D

Extra Help, also called the Low-Income Subsidy, pays Part D premiums, deductibles, and copays for people with limited income and resources. Since 2024 the partial-subsidy tier is gone, so everyone who qualifies now gets the full subsidy.

  • Income limit (2026): up to about $1,995 a month for an individual, $2,705 for a couple
  • Resource limits: $16,590 for an individual, $33,100 for a married couple
  • If you qualify for QMB, SLMB, or SLMB135, you're enrolled in Extra Help automatically

Apply through Social Security at ssa.gov or call 1-800-772-1213.

Medicare Enrollment Periods

Miss a deadline and you can face coverage gaps or permanent penalties. These dates are federal and the same in New Hampshire as everywhere else.

Period Dates What you can do
Initial Enrollment 7 months around your 65th birthday Sign up for Parts A, B, and D; pick MA or Medigap
Annual Open Enrollment Oct 15 - Dec 7 Switch MA plans, move between MA and Original Medicare, change Part D
MA Open Enrollment Jan 1 - Mar 31 Switch MA plans or drop MA for Original Medicare (if already in MA)
General Enrollment Jan 1 - Mar 31 Sign up for Part B if you missed your initial window
Medigap Open Enrollment 6 months from age 65 + Part B Buy any Medigap plan at the standard rate, no health screening

The dates in the table above are federal, so they run the same in New Hampshire as everywhere else. Changes you make during Annual Open Enrollment take effect the following January 1. If you're already getting Social Security before 65, you're enrolled in Parts A and B automatically; if not, you sign up yourself through Social Security.

You don't have to figure this out alone, and you don't have to pay a broker. New Hampshire's Medicare counseling program runs through ServiceLink ADRC, the Aging and Disability Resource Center network under NH DHHS, which serves as the state's State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP). Counselors are trained and certified, give free and unbiased help, and don't sell insurance or take commissions.

A ServiceLink SHIP counselor can help you:

  • Understand your Medicare options and what each part covers
  • Compare Medicare Advantage, Part D, and Medigap plans side by side
  • Apply for Medicare Savings Programs and Extra Help
  • Sort out claims, denials, and appeals

Call 1-866-634-9412 to reach a ServiceLink counselor near you.

Who to Call in New Hampshire

ServiceLink ADRC (New Hampshire SHIP) Free, unbiased one-on-one Medicare counseling, plan comparisons, and help applying for Medicare Savings Programs and Extra Help; counselors do not sell insurance. 1-866-634-9412 NH DHHS ServiceLink Medicare Support
NH Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Apply for New Hampshire's Medicare Savings Programs (QMB, SLMB, SLMB135) that help pay your Medicare premiums and cost-sharing. Medicare Beneficiaries Savings Program
Social Security Extra Help (the Part D Low-Income Subsidy) applications, plus automatic Part A and Part B enrollment questions. 1-800-772-1213 Apply for Extra Help
Medicare Compare Medicare Advantage, Part D, and Medigap plans by ZIP code and get answers to general Medicare questions (1-800-MEDICARE). 1-800-633-4227 Medicare Plan Finder
Your next step Call ServiceLink at 1-866-634-9412 for a free appointment with a trained counselor who can compare your New Hampshire plan options and screen you for the Medicare Savings Programs and Extra Help, without ever selling you anything.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Medicare cost in New Hampshire in 2026?

Most people pay $0 for Part A. The standard Part B premium is $202.90 a month with a $283 annual deductible. Standalone Part D premiums vary by plan (the 2026 projected average runs roughly $40 to $50), and many Medicare Advantage plans charge no extra premium. Your total depends on the plan you pick and the care you use.

Does New Hampshire have a Medigap birthday rule?

No. New Hampshire has no annual birthday rule or other state-created window to switch Medigap plans without health questions. Your one guaranteed-issue window is the six months that begin when you're 65 and enrolled in Part B. After that, insurers can use medical underwriting, so the safest time to buy Medigap is during that initial window.

What is SLMB135 in New Hampshire?

SLMB135 is New Hampshire's label for the federal Qualifying Individual (QI) Medicare Savings Program. It covers the Part B premium for people with income between 120% and 135% of the Federal Poverty Level, roughly $1,816 a month for an individual or $2,455 for a couple in 2026. Apply through NH DHHS; a ServiceLink counselor (1-866-634-9412) can help with the application.

How do I get help paying for Medicare in New Hampshire?

Apply for a Medicare Savings Program through NH DHHS at dhhs.nh.gov, and apply for Extra Help with Part D through Social Security at 1-800-772-1213. QMB covers all your Medicare premiums and cost-sharing if your income and assets are under the 2026 limits. A ServiceLink SHIP counselor (1-866-634-9412) can walk you through both applications for free.

Who runs Medicare counseling in New Hampshire?

NH DHHS runs Medicare counseling through the ServiceLink ADRC network, the state's SHIP program. Counselors are free, unbiased, and don't sell insurance. Reach them at 1-866-634-9412.

Learn More

MedicareMedicare Plans by State: What Varies and What Doesn'tOriginal Medicare is the same in all 50 states. Medicare Advantage, Part D, and Medigap rules are not. See what changes by state, then open your state guide. MedicareMedicare: The National GuideWhat is Medicare? A plain guide to Parts A, B, C, and D, who qualifies, 2026 costs, when to enroll, and what it doesn't cover, with help-paying options. MedicareOriginal Medicare vs. Medicare AdvantageCompare original Medicare vs Medicare Advantage on cost, networks, the $9,250 cap, and switching back. A neutral 2026 side-by-side to help you choose. MedicareHow Medigap WorksMedigap (Medicare Supplement) explained: how the standardized A-N plans work, Plan G vs Plan N, closed C and F plans, and the 6-month guaranteed-issue window. MedicareMedicare Part D Drug CoverageMedicare Part D in 2026: a $2,100 out-of-pocket cap, no donut hole, three benefit phases, the $615 deductible, premiums, the late penalty, and Extra Help. MedicareMedicare Savings ProgramsMedicare Savings Programs help low-income enrollees pay Part B premiums and, with QMB, all cost-sharing. See the four MSPs, 2026 limits, and how to apply. MedicareMedicare Enrollment PeriodsWhen to sign up for Medicare without a lifelong penalty: the 7-month Initial Enrollment Period, working past 65, the GEP, and what each late penalty costs.

Find personalized help with Medicare in New Hampshire at brevy.com.

The information on Brevy.com is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional legal, financial, or medical advice. Rules vary by state and program and change frequently. Always verify with the relevant agency or a qualified professional. Brevy is not a law firm, financial advisor, or healthcare provider.

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