How Far In Advance Can I Sign Up For Medicare

How Social Security Benefits Can Affect Medicare Enrollment

If you are receiving Social Security benefits when you turn 65, youll be automatically enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B, even if youre working. Your Medicare card will arrive in the mail about 3 months before your 65thbirthday.

Once youre enrolled in Medicare, a monthly Part B premium will be automatically deducted from your Social Security check. If you dont want Medicare Part B, you need to notify Medicare to opt out. There will be instructions for doing this on the back of your Medicare card.

If youre not receiving Social Security or Railroad Retirement Board benefits, you will need to enroll yourself in Medicare when you become eligible.

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• Your current coverage might not pay for health services if you dont have both Part A and Part B .
• If you have Medicare due to a disability or ALS , youll already have Part A coverage.

Avoid the penalty & gap in coverageIf you miss this 8-month Special Enrollment Period, youll have to wait to sign up and go months without coverage. You might also pay a monthly penalty until you turn 65. The penalty goes up the longer you wait to sign up. How much is the Part B late enrollment penalty?

When Should You Sign Up For Medicare If You Are Still Working

You can sign up for Medicare Part A at age 65 even if you’re still working and have insurance through your employer. You are allowed to delay signing up for Medicare Part B until you leave work. There is a special enrollment period, which lasts eight months, when you can sign up for Part B. Miss the special enrollment period, though, and you’ll have to pay a 10% penalty for each year you could have signed up but didn’t.

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You Automatically Get Medicare When You Turn 65

• Well mail you a welcome package with your Medicare card 3 months before your Medicare coverage starts.

Sign up for Part B if you live in Puerto Rico or outside the U.S.You get Part A automatically. If you want Part B, you need to sign up for it. If you dont sign up for Part B within 3 months of turning 65, you might have to wait to sign up and pay a monthly late enrollment penalty.

When Should I Apply For Medicare

If you need to sign up for Original Medicare â not everyone does, because some people are enrolled automatically â you should do so around the age of 65. Original Medicare includes Part A and Part B .

Medicare coverage generally doesnât start until youâre 65. You also have three months after your birthday to sign up. In total, your Initial Enrollment Period a seven-month window.

If you enroll three months before you turn 65, your coverage starts on the first day of your birthday month. If you enroll during the month you turn 65 â or up to three months after that â then your coverage will be delayed.

During this time, you can also join Medicare Part D. This is a separate plan that helps pay for prescription medications.

If you miss your IEP, you may have to pay a late-enrollment penalty, unless you qualify for certain exceptions. For instance, if you already have health insurance through your employer or your spouseâs employer, you can choose to delay Medicare.

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Im Working Past 65 But My Health Coverage Is From My Spouses Employer

A pretty common situation to face, if your health care coverage is from a spouses employer, you may be able to delay Medicare or you may need to enroll when you first become eligible. In this case, the employer still needs to have 20 or more employees. However, the big difference is thatemployers can have rules for covered dependents 65 and older that may require the individual to get Medicare at 65 in order to remain on the employer plan.

Therefore, if you have employer coverage through a spouses employer, you need to ask the employers benefits administrator directly about your Medicare enrollment choices.

How Do I Enroll In A Medicare Advantage Plan

Medicare Advantage Plans are health care options provided under Medicare Part C of the Medicare program. These plans are approved by Medicare but sold and serviced by private companies. There are several plan options available under Medicare Advantage such as managed care plans that involve a provider network to those that are specially designed for people with certain chronic diseases and other specialized health needs and some that may or may not have a provider network requirement. Most Medicare Advantage plans include Medicare prescription drug coverage.

For assistance with Medicare Advantage Plans comparisons and enrollments, please call our team of Medicare specialists at 1-855-408-1212 or you may log onto MyMedicare.gov to shop for Medicare Advantage Plans available in your area.

To enroll in any Medicare Advantage plan option you must have both Medicare Part A and Medicare Part B. Once you enroll into a Medicare Advantage plan, you will not use your Original Medicare card as your Medicare Advantage plan will replace Original Medicare. Instead the Medicare Advantage plan will provide you with a member ID card to use when visiting your medical provider. Please note, you will continue to pay the Medicare Part B premium, and you might also have to pay an additional monthly premium charged by the Medicare Advantage plan.

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To Qualify For Medicare You Need To Get Disability Benefits From:

• Social Security

• Railroad Retirement Board

Youll automatically get Part A and Part B after you get disability benefits for 24 months. Well mail you a welcome package with your Medicare card.

If you or your spouse worked for a railroad, call the Railroad Retirement Board at 1-877-772-5772.

If you live in Puerto Rico or outside the U.S.

You Automatically Get Medicare

• You should already have Part A and Part B , because you have ALS and youre already getting disability benefits.
• We mailed you a welcome package with your Medicare card.

Sign up for Part B if you live in Puerto Rico or outside the U.S.

• Well mail you a welcome package with your Medicare card 3 months before your Medicare coverage starts.

Sign up for Part B if you live in Puerto Rico or outside the U.S.You get Part A automatically. If you want Part B, you need to sign up for it. If you dont sign up for Part B within 3 months after your Part A starts, you might have to wait to sign up and pay a monthly late enrollment penalty.

• Well mail you a welcome package with your Medicare card 3 months before your Medicare coverage starts.

Sign up for Part B if you live in Puerto Rico or outside the U.S.You get Part A automatically. If you want Part B, you need to sign up for it. If you dont sign up for Part B within 3 months of turning 65, you might have to wait to sign up and pay a monthly late enrollment penalty.

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How Do I Enroll In A Prescription Drug Plan

The Medicare Prescription Drug Plans are sold by private insurance companies approved by Medicare. All people new to Medicare have a seven-month window to enroll in a PDP three months before, the month of and three months after their Medicare becomes effective. The month you enroll affects the PDPs effective date. All people with Medicare are eligible to enroll in a PDP however, unless you are new to Medicare or are entitled to a Special Enrollment Period, you must enroll or change plans during the Open Enrollment Period for Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D, Oct. 15 through Dec. 7. There is a monthly premium for these plans.

For assistance with Part D plan comparisons and enrollments, please call our team of Medicare specialists at 1-855-408-1212 or you may log onto MyMedicare.gov to shop for prescription drug plans available in your area.

If you have limited income and assets/resources, assistance is available to help pay premiums, deductibles and co-payments. You may be entitled to Extra Help through the Social Security Administration. To apply for this benefit contact SHIIP at 1-855-408-1212 or the Social Security Administration at 800-772-1213 or www.socialsecurity.gov.

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Once you lose employer coverage, you have eight months in which to sign up for Part B . If you don’t sign up for Part B within that window, you’ll have to wait until the next open-enrollment period , and your monthly premium will permanently increase by 10% for each 12-month period you delay.

To sign up for Medicare parts A and B, call 800-772-1213 or visit www.socialsecurity.gov/medicareonly .

Fill in the gaps. Also consider Medicare supplement coverage, also known as medigap. These plans cover part or all of the costs you would otherwise pay under parts A and B, including deductibles and co-pays. The ten plans are labeled by letter benefits for each are standardized, but insurers set their own premiums. The six-month initial enrollment period starts on the first day of the month in which you are 65 or older and are enrolled in Medicare Part B. During that window, you can’t be turned away by insurers because of a preexisting condition. Miss the deadline and you could end up paying more or be denied coverage altogether. The Obamacare ban on denying coverage based on preexisting conditions does not apply to Medicare.

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Ways To Apply For Disability Benefits:

• If you or your spouse worked for a railroad, call the Railroad Retirement Board at 1-877-772-5772.

Once your disability benefits start, well mail you a welcome package with your Medicare card.

Sign up for Part B if you live in Puerto Rico or outside the U.S.You get Part A automatically. If you want Part B, you need to sign up for it. If you dont sign up for Part B within 3 months after your Part A starts, you might have to wait to sign up for Part B and pay a monthly late enrollment penalty.

When Your Coverage Starts

The date your coverage starts depends on which month you sign up during your Initial Enrollment Period. Coverage always starts on the first of the month.

If you qualify for Premium-free Part A: Your Part A coverage starts the month you turn 65.

Part B : Coverage starts based on the month you sign up:

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Delaying Medicare Due To Work: Special Enrollment Period

If you didn’t enroll in Medicare because you were still working, and you were covered under a group health plan based on employment, you have a Special Enrollment Period during which you can sign up for Part A and/or Part B. While you or your spouse are still working and you’re still covered under a group health plan, you can sign up anytime.

After your or your spouse’s employment ends, your Special Enrollment Period lasts eight months, starting the month after the employment or group health plan ends . You can sign up for Part B anytime during that period and your coverage will begin the month after you sign up .

Special rule for Medicare Advantage or Part D drug plans. You have only two months after the month your employment or group health plan ends to sign up for a Medicare Advantage plan or Part D prescription drug plan . You can enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan starting three months before your Medicare Part B enrollment is due to take effect up to the day before your Part B coverage startsâbut again, enrollment must take place within two months of your employment or group health plan ending.

When coverage begins. If you sign up for Part B while you are still covered by a group health plan, or during the first full month that you no longer have this coverage, your Part B coverage will begin the first day of the month you sign up. But you can choose, instead, to have your coverage begin with any of the following three months.

Applying For Medicare Part A And Part B By Phone

Just like applying online, applying for Medicare by phone is easy. You can contact a Medicare representative at your local Social Security office by calling 1-800-772-1213. This number will automatically connect you to a Medicare representative who can help you in the process of applying for Original Medicare.

Depending on call volume, there might be a wait time. If the wait time is above average, you can schedule an appointment to have a representative call you.

The only downfall with applying for Medicare by phone is that it can take longer than online. If youre ahead of the game and start well before your birthday, applying by phone shouldnt cause any issues.

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When You Become Eligible For Medicare

Lets assume you have a Marketplace plan and are turning 65 sometime this year.

Once youre eligible for Medicare, youll have an Initial Enrollment Period to sign up for Medicare. For most people, the Initial Enrollment Period starts 3 months before their 65th birthday and ends 3 months after their 65th birthday.

In most cases its to your advantage to sign up for Medicare when youre first eligible because:

• Once your Medicare Part A coverage starts, you wont be eligible for a premium tax credit or other savings for a Marketplace plan. If you kept your Marketplace plan, youd have to pay full price.
• If you enroll in Medicare after your Initial Enrollment Period ends, you may have to pay a Part B late enrollment penalty for as long as you have Medicare. In addition, you can enroll in Medicare Part B only during the Medicare general enrollment period . Coverage doesnt start until July of that year. This may create a gap in your coverage.

Signing Up For Medicare

If you’re collecting Social Security benefits. If you claim Social Security benefits at age 65 or earlier, you will automatically be enrolled in Medicare when you turn 65, in both Part A and Part B. You can disenroll from Part B but not from Part A.

To enroll in Part B after age 65 later , you can fill out an Application for Enrollment in Medicare Part B and bring it or mail it to a Social Security office.

If you’re not collecting Social Security benefits. If you are 64 years and nine months or older and you have not started collecting Social Security benefits, you can sign up for both Part A and Part B online at .

How Medicare enrollment affects HSAs. Note that, when you’re enrolled in Part A, you are no longer allowed to make pre-tax contributions to your health savings account , though you cancontinue to use the funds already in your HSA account. Since anyone collecting Social Security retirement benefits has to be enrolled in Part A, this means that no one collecting Social Security can contribute to an HSA.

For 2023 premiums and deductibles, see Nolo’s 2023 Medicare cost update.

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How To Apply Online For Just Medicare

Are you within three months of turning age 65 or older and not ready to start your monthly Social Security benefits yet? You can use our online retirement application to sign up just for Medicare and wait to apply for your retirement or spouses benefits later. It takes less than 10 minutes, and there are no forms to sign and usually no documentation is required.

To find out what documents and information you need to apply, go to the .

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Social Security: How Far In Advance Can I Apply

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The rule of thumb is the earlier you decide to take distributions, the smaller your monthly check will be if you waited until full retirement age or the maximum age of 70 to take advantage of benefits.

According to the Social Security Administration, the earliest you can be eligible to receive benefits is 62 years of age but you must be 62 for the entire month. This means if you turn 62 on the 28th of the month, you must wait until the next month to claim benefits for the first time.

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If you were born on the first or second day of the month, you meet this requirement at the moment of your 62nd birthday. If you were born on any other day of the month, you do not meet this requirement until the following month.

The SSA states you can apply up to four months before you want your retirement benefits to start. This is the earliest you can apply for social security benefits to make sure your benefits begin to distribute as soon as you reach 62. For example, if you turn 62 on Dec. 2, you can start your benefits as early as December and begin the application process in August.

According to the administration, even if you are not ready to retire you should still sign up for Medicare three months before your 65th birthday.

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