NASHVILLE (AP) - TennCare officials have announced the open enrollment date for a program that helps with high unpaid medical bills for lower-income, elderly or disabled people.

The TennCare Standard Spend Down program open enrollment will sign up 2,500 new applicants.

Applications will be accepted beginning at 6 p.m. March 21 through a toll-free number, (866) 358-3230.

The line will be shut down once 2,500 applications have been received. During previous open enrollment periods, it took only an hour to receive 2,500 applications.

The program is for low-income individuals or those who are aged, blind, disabled or the caretaker relative of a Medicaid eligible child. To qualify, eligible individuals must have enough unpaid medical bills to meet the "spend down" threshold.

More details about eligibility and income guidelines are online at http://www.tn.gov/TennCare.