WASHINGTON – Federal officials have accepted the state’s petition to continue paying reimbursements for low-income Mainers who can’t get their full Medicare prescription benefits, Maine’s congressional delegation announced Friday.

The state has covered the costs of prescriptions for people whose benefits were held up because of computer errors and other startup problems when the new Medicare Part D plan went into effect in January.

Maine’s U.S. senators and representatives said Friday that Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt has accepted Maine’s request to extend reimbursements to March 8.

The move ensures that people will continue receiving full Medicare benefits, and that the state will be compensated by the federal government for its costs, according to the delegation.