Rhode Island SHIP: Free Medicare Counseling for Seniors and Caregivers

Rhode Island's SHIP program (Senior Health Insurance Program) offers free, unbiased counseling on Medicare — no sales pitch, no insurance commissions, no plan enrollment pressure. It is run by the Office of Healthy Aging, and the counselors are trained specifically on Rhode Island's programs.

What SHIP Counselors Help With

SHIP counselors can walk you through the Medicare Savings Program eligibility requirements and help you figure out whether your parent qualifies for QMB (income up to $1,683/month) or QI (up to $2,255/month). They explain the application process, help you understand which documents DHS requires, and answer questions about how income and assets are counted.

Beyond MSP, SHIP counselors cover Medicare plan comparisons (Original Medicare vs. Medicare Advantage, Medigap supplement plans, Part D prescription plans), Extra Help/Low-Income Subsidy eligibility, and the RIPAE pharmaceutical assistance program.

Their advice is genuinely unbiased. SHIP is a federally funded program through the Administration for Community Living. The counselors do not sell insurance and receive no commissions.

How to Reach SHIP

Toll-free phone: 1-888-884-8721

Local phone: 401-462-0510

Call volumes can be high, especially during Medicare Open Enrollment (October 15 through December 7). Outside that window, scheduling is generally more flexible. Counseling is available by phone, and in-person appointments may be available depending on location.

What SHIP Cannot Do

SHIP counselors have clear scope boundaries. They can inform and advise, but they cannot:

• Serve as your parent's ongoing legal representative at DHS
• Complete financial disclosure forms on your parent's behalf
• Track whether the state BENDEX buy-in transmission went through to SSA
• Draft an administrative fair hearing appeal if a claim is denied
• Manage renewal paperwork on a recurring basis

For those ongoing tasks, you need either a DHS authorized representative designation or a Power of Attorney on file, and you manage the casework yourself (or with the help of an elder law attorney or Rhode Island Legal Services for low-income cases).

SHIP vs. Insurance Brokers

Insurance brokers offer free Medicare consultations too, but their business model depends on enrolling you in a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan — they earn commissions from the insurance carrier. They cannot submit MSP applications to DHS, manage state administrative issues, or help with RIPAE enrollment.

For MSP and state-level benefit navigation, SHIP is the right resource. For plan shopping after you have your MSP benefits in place, SHIP is also the right resource — because they compare plans without a sales incentive.

The Rhode Island Medicare Savings Programs guide explains how SHIP fits into the full application and renewal process, and where it hands off to DHS for casework.

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