DELAYING MEDICARE

Published by Mike Lovell on May 24, 2019May 24, 2019

DELAYING MEDICARE

Many people are delaying Medicare now for various reasons.  Maybe you are considering it because:

• you are still working and have coverage through your employer
• your spouse is still working and you have coverage through their employer

If you are curious how to delay Medicare enrollment then this will help you with that process.

If you have started receiving your Social Security benefits and you want to delay Medicare then you will need to contact Social Security.

But if you have not started receiving Social Security benefits yet then this is for you.

“Medicare and You 2019” is the official government guide for Medicare.  Page 18 which has information about Medicare part B.  The section “Should I get part B?” refers to people who are still working.

HOW TO DELAY MEDICARE PART A AND B

The following is from Medicare.gov for people working for a company that employs 20 or more people.  It includes:

• Who to ask from your company to verify you have group health plan coverage
• How to delay enrolling into Medicare

Ask your benefits manager whether you have group health plan coverage (as defined by the IRS). People with group health coverage based on current employment may be able to delay Part A and Part B and won’t have to pay a lifetime late enrollment penalty if they enroll later. If you want to delay both Part A and Part B coverage, you don’t need to do anything when you turn 65.

STARTING MEDICARE AFTER DELAYING ENROLLMENT

Keep this for when you need to enroll in Medicare in the future.

Once the employment (or your employer/union coverage) ends, 3 things happen:

1. You may be able to get COBRA coverage, which continues your health insurance through the employer’s plan (in most cases for only 18 months) and probably at a higher cost to you.
2. You have 8 months to sign up for Part B without a penalty, whether or not you choose COBRA. If you choose COBRA, don’t wait until your COBRA ends to enroll in Part B. If you don’t enroll in Part B during the 8 months after the employment ends:
   • You may have to pay a penalty for as long as you have Part B.
   • You won’t be able to enroll until January 1–March 31, and you’ll have to wait until July 1 of that year before your coverage begins. This may cause a gap in health care coverage.
3. If you already have COBRA coverage when you enroll in Medicare, your COBRA will probably end. If you become eligible for COBRA coverage after you’re already enrolled in Medicare, you must be allowed to take the COBRA coverage. It will always be secondary to Medicare (unless you have End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD).

This is a lot of information but to summarize, you will need to apply for Medicare part B. How you do that depends on:

• If you have part A, then you can use 2 specific forms
  • Application for Enrollment in Part B (CMS-40B)
  • Request for Employment Information (CMS-L564).
• If you do not have part A, then you will need to contact Social Security to enroll in both Medicare Part A and Part B

Page 17 of “Medicare and You” has some more info about starting Medicare after you have delayed enrolling under the “Special Enrollment Period” section.

NEXT STEPS: CONTACT ME 6 MONTHS BEFORE RETIRING

If you know when you are retiring, then contact me 6 months before that retirement date.  I can help you make a smooth transition from employer coverage to Medicare.

If your retirement happens sooner than expected, then please reach out to me right away for help.  After delaying Medicare there will be a few key steps to complete you won’t want to miss.

Mike Lovell
608-571-4461
Mike@askMedicareMike.com