About SHIP

“Be assured, if you are looking for a friend (and expert) in the Medicare world, SHIP is your Best Friend.”

—Anonymous SHIP customer

Message From the Director

SHIP’s mission is to provide education, guidance and counseling to Montgomery County residents, like you, for every aspect of your Medicare coverage by considering your unique situation. All our SHIP counselors are certified by Medicare to provide professional advice to you and your family members.

Our professionalism, coupled with a strong personal touch, enhances the probability of success at every step. Our goal is to create confident relationships, which translate into finding strategies to address every client situation and delivering accurate information. Our commitment is to find the best resolution for you.

SHIP Counselors are empowered with experience and knowledge to deal with each client’s requirements. Beyond their initial training and certification by Medicare, SHIP counselors receive ongoing technical support and training from the State of Maryland and Federal agencies.

We are happy to share our expert knowledge through counseling as well as to organizations or groups who want to offer free Medicare presentations to County residents.

We understand how important it is for you to have a reliable Medicare resource when you need one; SHIP is here to meet that need.

Thank you,

Rafael Espinoza
Director, Montgomery County SHIP

SHIP staff and volunteers

Who We Are

Montgomery County State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) is a public service for County seniors managed by the Jewish Council for the Aging of Greater Washington (JCA) made possible through funding by the U.S. Administration for Community Living, with support from Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, and the Maryland Department of Aging. This combination of Federal, State and County funding covers the costs of a small staff. The JCA of Greater Washington holds the contract for managing the SHIP of Montgomery County, Maryland.

Montgomery County SHIP also manages the Montgomery County Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP), a program to help Medicare enrollees identify and report health care fraud, abuse, and errors.

The staff relies on a corps of well-trained volunteer experts to provide counseling to help people navigate the complicated Medicare system and the private policies that supplement Medicare coverage

Our Impact

SHIP serves more than 100,000 people in Montgomery County with Medicare, including:

  • Residents aged 65 and older, whether enrolled in Medicare or not
  • Resident under 65 and disabled
  • Their family members and caregivers
  • Our aging network partners

SHIP provides free information, educational programs, individual counseling about:

  • Medicare
  • Medicare supplement plans (Medigap)
  • Medicare Advantage (Part C) plans
  • Prescription drug plans
  • State and Federal Saving programs (QMB/SLMB, Extra Help, or SPDAP)
  • Employer health insurance plans
  • Long-term care insurance.

The SHIP program also works to curb Medicare fraud and abuse, and to resolve enrollees’ billing issues.

Contact us today to see how we can help our neighbors!

Contact us
301-255-4250