Maine Medicaid income limits

Last verified: June 2026

MaineCare income limits by coverage group (2026)

Maine is an ACA expansion state. Adults 19–64 qualify at or below 138% of the Federal Poverty Level — the standard expansion threshold. Children and pregnant women qualify at higher income levels under longstanding federal Medicaid rules. The table below shows approximate monthly income limits based on 2026 HHS poverty guidelines.

Source: Maine DHHS OFI; 2026 HHS Federal Poverty Guidelines. Income figures are approximate monthly amounts before deductions. Contact OFI at 1-855-797-4357 for exact figures for your household size and category.

No asset test for MAGI-based MaineCare

Maine does not use an asset test for MAGI-based MaineCare — the category covering most adults under 65, children, and pregnant women. Savings accounts, vehicles, and home equity do not affect eligibility. This is consistent with ACA expansion requirements, which prohibited asset tests for the expansion group.

Long-term care Medicaid programs — including nursing facility coverage and home-based waiver programs administered through DHHS's Office of Aging and Disability Services — do apply asset limits. The rules are complex and follow federal spousal impoverishment protections. Consult a Maine elder law attorney before making asset transfers if a family member may need MaineCare long-term care coverage.

How Maine counts income for MaineCare

Maine uses MAGI (Modified Adjusted Gross Income) methodology for most MaineCare categories. MAGI income is essentially the income you report on your federal tax return, with a few modifications.

• Wages, salaries, tips, and self-employment income count
• Social Security benefits count for most adults (not SSI)
• Child support received counts as income
• Unemployment benefits count
• A 5% income disregard applies — if your gross income is within 5 percentage points of the limit, you may still qualify
• Child support paid out does not reduce countable income under MAGI rules
• Lump-sum payments, gifts, and inheritances generally do not count as income under MAGI

Maine counts the income of all household members when determining eligibility. Who counts as a household member follows IRS tax dependency rules — not simply who lives in the same house.

Maine's 2019 expansion: who it added

Before January 2019, Maine covered parents and caretakers up to a much lower income threshold, and adults without dependent children generally could not qualify for MaineCare at all. The ACA expansion — forced into effect after courts ruled the governor could not block it — extended coverage to adults 19–64 earning up to 138% FPL regardless of parental status or disability. Per Maine DHHS, roughly 70,000 Mainers gained coverage in the first year after expansion took effect.

How Medicaid income limits work

Medicaid eligibility is tied to the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), a measure the Department of Health and Human Services updates each January. States set their income limits as a percentage of FPL — so when FPL increases, the dollar thresholds for Medicaid also shift.

The Affordable Care Act established a standard income methodology called Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) for most Medicaid applicants. Under MAGI, the agency counts wages, salaries, self-employment income, Social Security benefits, and most other taxable income. Assets — a savings account, vehicle, home — are not counted for MAGI-based programs. That changed with the ACA and applies in all states.

States that expanded Medicaid under the ACA cover most adults at or below 138% FPL. In non-expansion states, income limits for adults without dependent children are far lower — sometimes as low as a few hundred dollars per month — or eligibility for that category simply doesn't exist.

What counts as income under MAGI

MAGI (Modified Adjusted Gross Income) is the income standard for most Medicaid applicants — children, adults under 65, pregnant women, and parents. It includes wages, salary, tips, self-employment income, unemployment benefits, Social Security retirement and disability benefits (SSDI), and most other taxable income.

It does not count child support received, gifts, loans, inheritances that are not generating income, or Supplemental Security Income (SSI) payments. One key MAGI rule: the ACA added a 5% FPL income disregard for most adults, which effectively raises the usable threshold by that amount. So a state with a 133% FPL limit effectively covers adults to about 138% FPL after the disregard.

Assets — a bank account, car, or home — are not counted for MAGI-based programs. That's a major difference from old-law Medicaid, where asset tests were common. If you previously didn't qualify because of assets, your eligibility may have changed after the ACA.

Asset limits and long-term care Medicaid

MAGI-based programs have no asset test. But Medicaid programs that cover long-term care — nursing home care, home and community-based services for seniors — use the old income and asset methodology, which does include asset limits.

Asset limits for long-term care Medicaid vary by state and are updated periodically. Generally, countable assets above the limit must be spent down before an applicant qualifies. Exempt assets — the primary home (in most circumstances), one vehicle, and certain personal property — are not counted.

Specific asset limits for Maine's long-term care programs are on the seniors and long-term care page. The thresholds change, so verify current figures with MaineCare (Maine Medicaid) directly.