President Donald Trump announced on social media that more than 20 million seniors will receive a $90 payment to help cover Medicare premiums, a move timed before the Nov. 3 midterm elections.

The payment will be drawn from the Medicare Improvement Fund, a congressional fund created in 2008 for flexible Medicare operations and provider payments.

Eligible recipients are Medicare Part B enrollees who reside in the United States, are not already receiving Medicaid premium assistance, and do not have income‑adjusted premiums; those enrolled in Medicare Advantage are excluded.

The White House said the one‑time payment will be issued in October, either by direct deposit or mailed check, to qualifying seniors.

More than half of eligible Medicare beneficiaries are enrolled in Medicare Advantage, a private‑plan alternative, which makes them ineligible for the payment, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation.

The use of the Medicare Improvement Fund for direct payments to seniors is unprecedented; previous administrations have only tapped the fund for other priorities, such as the $20.74 billion allocated to the Affordable Care Act in 2010.

KFF’s executive vice president for health policy, Larry Levitt, noted that the fund’s broad language gives the administration considerable discretion to allocate money for initiatives like the $90 senior payment.