How Do You Enroll in Medicare?
It’s pretty easy to do. You enroll through the Social Security Administration.
Here is the link that will help you enroll within the Medicare system. http://www.ssa.gov/medicare/
Some people start receiving Social Security as early as age 62. If you are already receiving Social Security benefits, you will be automatically enrolled in Medicare (both Part A and Part B), starting the first day of the month when you turn 65. You don’t need to do anything to enroll, and your Medicare card will be automatically mailed to you about 3 months before your 65th birthday. If you apply for Social Security benefits at age 65, you will also be automatically enrolled in Medicare at the same time.
However, if you decide to delay applying for Social Security benefits past age 65, you can still enroll in Medicare when you turn 65 by visiting your local Social Security office or you may be able to enroll over the telephone. If you are not already receiving Social Security benefits, you can enroll in Medicare up to three months before your 65th birthday, but no later than three months after the month of your birthday. This 7 month period is known as the initial enrollment period, and you would be well advised to enroll in Medicare during this period. If you sign up for Medicare during the first 3 months before the month you turn 65, your coverage will begin on the month you turn 65. However, if you wait until the last 4 months of your initial enrollment period to sign up for Medicare, your coverage will be delayed.
If you delay enrollment into Medicare past your initial enrollment period, you may have to wait until the next general enrollment period, which is January 1 through March 31 of each year. If you enroll in Medicare during the general enrollment period, your coverage will not start until July 1. In addition, you may have to wait until the next annual election period (October 15 to December 7 of each year) to enroll in a Medicare Part D drug plan.
Furthermore, if you delay enrolling in Medicare beyond your initial enrollment period, you could get hit with a late enrollment penalty. The amount of the penalty will depend on how long you delayed enrolling in Medicare beyond the date when you were first eligible. However, this late enrollment penalty generally applies only if you did not have medical insurance based on current employment at the time you initially became Medicare eligible. If you had delayed enrolling in Medicare because you were already getting your medical insurance through employment, you would be eligible to enroll in Medicare at a later time without having to pay any late enrollment penalty. You can of course sign up for Medicare anytime you please while you are still getting group healthcare coverage through your employer or through a union. But if you lose your job or quit, or if your employer drops their healthcare coverage, you can sign up for Medicare penalty-free during an 8-month Special Enrollment Period that begins the month after your employment ends or the group health plan coverage ends, whichever happens first.
This eight-month special enrollment period begins as soon as your employment ends, even if you take COBRA benefits while unemployed. COBRA stands for Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act, which is a law that give workers and their families who lose their health benefits the right to choose to continue group health benefits provided by their group health plan for limited periods of time under circumstances such as voluntary or involuntary job loss, reduction in hours worked, or transition between jobs, but usually at extra cost. However, if at the time you initially became Medicare eligible you happened to be on COBRA, you would not be eligible for a special enrollment period when that coverage ends, because you are not considered as having medical coverage based on current employment, and you would be well-advised to go ahead and sign up for Medicare right away as soon as you become eligible.
Suppose you are retired and are receiving medical insurance coverage through your former employer’s retirement plan at the time you become Medicare eligible. In this case, you are not considered as having medical insurance based on current employment, so you should go ahead and sign up for Medicare as soon as you become eligible, lest you get hit with that late enrollment penalty.
Medicare currently has four parts: Part A, Part B, Part C, and Part D. When you first sign up for Medicare, you will automatically be enrolled in Part A of the Original Medicare Plan, and you have the option to enroll also in Part B. In addition, you now have the option to enroll in Part D (the prescription drug plan) unless you specifically choose to join a Medicare Advantage Plan (Part C).
Furthermore, you have the option to purchase Medicare supplemental policies (sometimes called Medigap) from private insurers to cover some of the deductibles and copayments that Original Medicare does not cover.
Learn More about Your Options:
Medicare Part A
Medicare Part B
Medicare Part C
Medicare Part D
Medicare Supplements (Medigap)