Do you have to sign up for Medicare at 65 if you are still working? Can you delay Medicare enrollment if you’re still working? That’s what we’re going to talk about in today’s video, hope you stay tuned.
My name is Jamie from meetjamie.com. I’m an independent insurance broker. I help people all over the country understand how the Medicare program works and find the coverage that fits their needs. Best of all, my services are 100% free, so if you have any questions, leave a comment below or reach out to me. I’ll leave my phone number and website in the description of this video.
So when it comes to trying to decide about taking Medicare at 65 if you’re still working, obviously the topic can be a little bit confusing, so in this video we’ll explore the details of whether or not you have to sign up for Medicare at 65. So, first let’s just talk about the Medicare program in general terms.
What is the Medicare Program?
So Medicare is a Federal Health insurance program primarily for people age 65 and older, but it’s also available to certain people under 65 who have certain disabilities. It’s divided into four parts, Part A, which is hospital insurance, Part B, which is medical insurance, Part C, which is Medicare Advantage, and Part D, which is prescription drug coverage.
Is Medicare Enrollment Automatic?
Here’s the first and most important thing that you need to know. If you have already taken Social Security prior to your 65th birthday, you are going to be automatically enrolled in Medicare.
If you have not taken Social Security prior to turning 65, then you have to decide if you are going to enroll in the program at 65. Now, there is a seven-month window where you can do that around your 65th birthday. It starts three months before the month of your 65th birthday, includes the month of your 65th birthday and the three months following.
Should I Sign-Up for Medicare I’m Still Working?
So, let’s get to the question at hand. Do you have to sign up for Medicare at 65 if you are still working? The short answer is no. You don’t have to sign up for Medicare if you’re still working and you can continue to receive healthcare coverage through your employer. Now, here’s the thing, there are some things that you want to consider before you make that decision.
The most important thing you can do at this juncture of your life when you’re getting ready to transition to Medicare and you’re trying to decide which path you’re going to take, whether you’re going to continue with your employer coverage or Medicare, is you want to reach out to the HR person at your employer, whoever handles your medical benefits and you want to have a conversation with them, and here’s the reason why. There’s a high probability they’ve talked to many other people before you about this exact scenario, and they can be a great resource. That and an independent insurance broker can also help you, like myself.
The other thing that you want to consider is how big is the company that you work for? If your employer has more than 20 employees, then they’re obligated to give you the same coverage that they would give any other health … any other employee, excuse me. If the company or the employer that you work for has less than 20 employees, then you’re probably going to want to look at signing up for Medicare, but again, the best thing you can do initially is have that conversation with an HR person at your employer and a Medicare insurance broker like myself.
So, then it becomes a matter of once you know those key things about your employer and how they handle people on Medicare and what size the company is and all of that, then you can start to investigate, okay, if I stay on my employer’s health insurance, what does that get me? So in other words, what is the premiums? What are the co-payments? Is there co-insurance? Are there deductibles? Is there a maximum deductible for the year? Are there networks?
The reason why is that some people have very rich medical benefits from their employer, but for some people Medicare is going to be a much better option, and in many cases it can even cost you less than your employer plan. So there is some investigating and some research that you have to do, and the good news, again, is you don’t have to do it alone. There are people that can help you at your employer, other agents and brokers who’ve walked many, many, many other people through this as well.
So let’s say that you go through the whole process and you decide, I’m going to keep my employer coverage, I’m going to delay your Medicare enrollment. Then what you have to keep in mind is that once you decide to retire, or once you lose that benefit from the employer and then you want to go apply for Medicare, you will get what’s called a Special Enrollment Period, meaning you’ll be granted the same rights that you would’ve been granted at 65.
What is Creditable Coverage for Medicare?
Now, the important thing to know is that you will have to provide Medicare with verification that you had credible coverage, and that’s another reason why you really want to investigate and find out what your employer insurance is. Does Medicare deem it credible coverage? Because then if you delay enrolling in Medicare, and let’s say you get laid off or you retire, or the option is no longer available to you, and then you want to transition fully to the Medicare program, you’re going to want to make sure that you can provide verification to Medicare that you have had credible coverage from your employer.
It’s important to note that even if you’re not working at 65, you still have to enroll in Part B during your initial enrollment period to avoid late enrollment penalties. Now, again, this is if you did not sign up for Social Security when you were eligible. Again, that’s a seven-month window, three months before the month of your 65th birthday, the month of your 65th birthday, and three months after.
Medicare Enrollment after 65
So once you have made those decisions, then you can decide if you transition completely to Medicare, do you need to add a Medicare supplement or are you going to go down the path of Part C, which is Medicare Advantage? That’s for a different video.
Just remember that when it comes to signing up for Medicare at 65, and you are going to continue working, you don’t necessarily have to sign up if you have credible coverage that you want to keep from your employer of over 20 employees. I know it’s clear as mud.
Then another great resource to look into this further is to pick up a Medicare & You guide, or you can download it on the website. It’s just called the Medicare & You Handbook, and it has all the details in there as well. If you’d like a copy of that, I’d be more than happy to send you an email with that link.
So if you do enjoy videos about Medicare, make sure you subscribe to the channel, like this video, share it with a friend, and again, if you have any questions about Medicare enrollment, leave them in the comments below. Thanks so much for watching, have a great day.