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Prescription costs

PAAD and Senior Gold: help with drug costs in New Jersey

New Jersey runs two state programs that help pay for prescriptions: PAAD for lower incomes and Senior Gold for incomes a little higher.

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From the New Jersey Division of Aging Services (PAAD and Senior Gold)
An older man's hands filling a weekly pill organizer next to prescription bottles

With PAAD you pay $5 for a generic and $7 for a brand-name drug, and PAAD pays the premium for certain Part D plans at or below the regional benchmark. You may qualify if you are 65 or older, or getting Social Security Disability, and your 2026 income is no more than $64,943 single or $72,390 married.

How to apply in New Jersey

By mail
A paper NJSave application is available for people without a computer

Applying is free. Nobody should charge you to apply.

Apply on the official site

Who may qualify in New Jersey

Who may qualify for PAAD and Senior Gold
One personMarried couple
Yearly income limit for PAAD (2026)Less than $54,943 a yearLess than $62,390 a year
Age65 or older, or 18 to 64 and getting Social Security Disability
Yearly income range for Senior Gold, single (2026)$54,943 to $64,943 a year
Yearly income range for Senior Gold, married (2026)$62,390 to $72,390 a year
Medicare drug planIf you have Medicare, you must enroll in a Part D plan
Where you liveNew Jersey resident
Other coverageYou can't be on Medicaid or have other drug coverage as good as PAAD; limited or partial coverage is fine

Source: New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services (source 1)

What you may get

What PAAD and Senior Gold pays
What PAAD paysYou pay $5 for each covered generic and $7 for each covered brand-name prescription; Medicare and PAAD pay the rest. PAAD also pays the monthly premium for certain Part D plans at or below the regional benchmark
What Senior Gold paysYou pay $15 plus half of the rest of the cost of each covered drug. After you spend $2,000 in a year ($3,000 for a married couple), you pay a flat $15 per prescription

Source: New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services (source 1)

Dates, renewals and waiting lists

Dates and renewals
RenewingMost PAAD members renew every two years; Senior Gold members renew every year

Source: New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services (source 1)

Good to know

  • Senior Gold members pay their own Part D premium, and any late enrollment penalty, to their plan.
  • Neither program pays for diabetic test strips or lancets, or for drugs bought outside New Jersey.
  • New Jersey's AIDS Drug Distribution Program (ADDP) is a separate program for people living with HIV.

Sources: New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services (source 2), Medicare.gov (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services) (source 3)

Free help

Free help with this in New Jersey

More help in New Jersey

State help with drug costs in another state

Sources

  1. New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services, Pharmaceutical Assistance to the Aged & Disabled (PAAD) (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
  2. New Jersey Department of Human Services, Division of Aging Services, Senior Gold Prescription Discount Program (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.
  3. Medicare.gov (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services), Find out if your state has a State Pharmaceutical Assistance Program: New Jersey (official government site). Checked Oct 28, 2026.

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