Rhode Island SHIP Medicare Help: 1-888-884-8721 and 10 Local Sites

Rhode Island SHIP Medicare help starts with one statewide line, 1-888-884-8721. Rhode Island's State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) is staffed through the Rhode Island Office of Healthy Aging (OHA).1 OHA's brochure says Rhode Island SHIP counselors give free, unbiased help with Medicare questions, plan selection and enrollment support, and that a certified counselor works with you one on one, based on your own situation.2

In This Guide

• Rhode Island SHIP Lives Inside the Office of Healthy Aging
• Rhode Island SHIP Local Agencies and Phone Numbers
• What OHA's Brochure Says a Rhode Island SHIP Counselor Covers
• Why Fall Is the Time to Call in Rhode Island
• If You Have Both Medicare and Medicaid
• Getting Help Paying Your Medicare Costs
• Bringing a Medicare Denial to Rhode Island SHIP
• A Charge on Your Statement You Never Got
• Why OHA Can Call Rhode Island SHIP Unbiased
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Learn More

Rhode Island SHIP Lives Inside the Office of Healthy Aging

The State Health Insurance Assistance Program is a national program, and the Administration for Community Living says SHIP services are delivered by state units on aging or state departments of insurance. In Rhode Island, the program is published and staffed through OHA, which hosts Rhode Island SHIP's Medicare Counseling page and its toll-free line and describes Rhode Island SHIP's job as helping people find the right Medicare coverage at the right cost.1

What makes Rhode Island's setup unusual is how much runs through that one number. OHA's brochure presents its Medicare help as "3 Great Programs" and "1 Helpful Resource": SHIP counseling, the Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP), and help applying for programs that lower Medicare costs, available throughout Rhode Island and supported in part by federal Administration for Community Living grants.2 So a family with a plan question, a suspicious bill and a money worry doesn't need three phone numbers. One call reaches all of it.

Rhode Island SHIP also leans on people outside OHA's office. OHA says SHIP volunteers, along with community partners, help people during Medicare's annual Open Enrollment and help new beneficiaries on an ongoing basis.2

Rhode Island SHIP Local Agencies and Phone Numbers

If you'd rather meet someone in person, or you're helping a parent who doesn't like long phone calls, OHA's brochure tells readers they can contact a local SHIP agency instead of the statewide line. These are the ten it lists, with the numbers it prints:2

The brochure gives names and phone numbers only, so call ahead and ask when a counselor is in and whether you need an appointment. If none of these is close, the statewide line, 1-888-884-8721, serves the whole state.2

What OHA's Brochure Says a Rhode Island SHIP Counselor Covers

OHA's brochure lists what a certified Rhode Island SHIP counselor covers in a one-on-one session. In plain terms:2

• Your options: how Original Medicare, Medicare Advantage and drug coverage fit your situation
• Comparing and enrolling: Medicare plan comparisons and enrollment support
• Problems: troubleshooting billing issues and appeals
• Costs: screening for help paying for prescriptions and premiums
• Everything else: referral to other resources

Before you hang up, ask whether the counselor will submit an enrollment with you or help you compare and leave the sign-up to you. The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) told Congress in June 2026 that some SHIP grantees help enroll beneficiaries in Medicare plans, so practice isn't the same everywhere, and "enrollment support" can mean either.5 The same report notes that SHIP counselors face capacity constraints as call volumes rise, which is one more reason not to leave a fall plan change until the last week.5

Why Fall Is the Time to Call in Rhode Island

Everyone on Medicare gets the same fall window: Medicare Open Enrollment runs October 15 through December 7, and changes made then take effect January 1.6 That's when Rhode Island SHIP's volunteers and community partners are out in force.2

Rhode Island adds a second reason that most states don't have. Under R.I. Gen. Laws § 27-18.2-3(h), during that same Annual Enrollment Period, someone enrolled in a Medigap policy or a Medicare Advantage plan, who has had Medigap or Medicare Advantage coverage with no gap longer than 90 days since their Medicare Initial Enrollment Period, can buy any Medigap policy an insurer sells in Rhode Island without medical underwriting.4 Medigap coverage bought under Rhode Island's annual right takes effect January 1. For people under 65 who are in Medicare Advantage or Medigap Plan A because of a disability, Rhode Island's yearly right covers every Medigap Plan A policy an insurer sells in the state.4 Bring your coverage dates to a Rhode Island SHIP counselor before you drop a plan; the full rules are in our guide to switching Medigap plans in Rhode Island.

If you're enrolled in Rhode Island Pharmaceutical Assistance to the Elderly (RIPAE), the state's prescription help program, you have one more window. Enrollment at any RIPAE level earns a one-time Special Enrollment Period to change your Part D or Medicare Advantage plan, but it can't be used during the October 15 to December 7 Open Enrollment period.7 That makes it worth asking a counselor about in the spring or summer, when the fall window is closed. Our RIPAE guide covers who qualifies.

If You Have Both Medicare and Medicaid

People with both Medicare and Medicaid have a separate OHA program on the same 888 line. OHA's Medicare-Medicaid Enrollment Supports program gives one-to-one options counseling to people who are dually eligible, covering choices such as fee-for-service and special needs plans.2

One caution if you read OHA's page yourself. OHA's Medicare/Medicaid Counseling page was last updated in March 2025 and still lists Rhode Island's Medicare-Medicaid Plan as an option.2 That plan is gone: the state's Medicaid agency says the INTEGRITY Medicare-Medicaid Plan ended December 31, 2025, and INTEGRITY for Duals, a fully integrated special needs plan from Neighborhood Health Plan of Rhode Island, began January 1, 2026. People who qualify can join INTEGRITY for Duals at any time, with coverage starting the first day of the next month.3 Ask the counselor to compare that plan with the coordination-only plans, and see our guide to INTEGRITY for Duals.

Getting Help Paying Your Medicare Costs

Rhode Island SHIP helps people with limited income apply for Medicaid, the Medicare Savings Programs and Extra Help, also called the Low Income Subsidy.1

Rhode Island runs its Medicare Savings Programs under the name Medicare Premium Payment program, with two tiers for consumers: Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) and Qualified Individual (QI). Since February 1, 2026, Rhode Island places people who would have qualified for Specified Low-Income Medicare Beneficiary (SLMB) coverage in QMB instead. For 2026, Rhode Island's Medicare Premium Payment program sets monthly income limits of $1,683 (single) and $2,275 (couple) for QMB and $2,255 and $3,050 for QI, with resource limits of $9,950 and $14,910.8 Those printed limits aren't a hard cutoff, because states can disregard certain income and resources, so anyone close to them should apply and let the state do the counting. For one-on-one application help, the state directs people to the Aging and Disability Resource Center (ADRC) at 401-462-4444 to talk with an application support specialist.8 What each tier pays is in our guide to Rhode Island Medicare Savings Programs.

Bringing a Medicare Denial to Rhode Island SHIP

A denial letter is a good reason to call Rhode Island SHIP. Medicare's own guide, "Medicare Appeals" (April 2026), tells people with Medicare to call their SHIP for free, personalized health insurance counseling, including help with appeals.9 The appeal levels and deadlines are in our guide to Medicare appeals.

If you're handling the paperwork for a parent, make it official. Medicare's appeals guide says a person can appoint a representative, such as a family member, friend, advocate, attorney or doctor, using the "Appointment of Representative" form (Form CMS-1696) or a written request with the required details.9

A Charge on Your Statement You Never Got

That's a job for Rhode Island's Senior Medicare Patrol, and you reach it on the same 1-888-884-8721 line. OHA says its SMP program helps prevent, detect and report health care fraud, and that a network of trained volunteers reviews members' Medicare notices to make sure every service and charge listed is accurate.2

Medicare.gov's advice is to compare the dates and services on your calendar with the Medicare statements you get, and to give your Medicare Number only to your providers, your plan, or people you trust who work with Medicare, such as your SHIP.10 Medicare.gov's page on reporting Medicare fraud explains how to report a charge, and our guide to Medicare fraud protection shows what a suspicious charge tends to look like.

Why OHA Can Call Rhode Island SHIP Unbiased

OHA's brochure calls Rhode Island SHIP counselors' help "unbiased," and federal law gives that word teeth.2 Under 42 U.S.C. 1395b-4, each state's SHIP grant plan must assure that SHIP staff, including volunteers, have no conflict of interest in providing the counseling, and the Administration for Community Living's conflict-of-interest resource names anyone paid for enrolling beneficiaries in a specific insurance plan as an example of a person with an inherent conflict.11 The choice stays yours. A broker works differently, and sometimes a broker is the better fit; our comparison of SHIP counselors and Medicare brokers explains when.

Learn More

Find personalized help reaching a Rhode Island SHIP counselor for a Medicare plan, bill or appeal 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.