You don’t need to sign up for Social Security and Medicare at the same time. You can enroll in Medicare before or after claiming Social Security, and each program has different eligibility criteria.
The Social Security full retirement age is 66 for most baby boomers, and you receive a smaller monthly payout if you sign up at a younger age. Some retirees further delay signing up in order to qualify for larger monthly payments later in retirement.
However, the Medicare eligibility age remains 65. So, if you want to wait until 66 or later to claim Social Security, you will have to sign up for Medicare separately at age 65.
Here’s what you need to know about signing up for Medicare before claiming Social Security:
— Social Security and Medicare are separate decisions.
— Some people are automatically enrolled in Medicare.
— Remember to sign up for Medicare on time.
— Beneficiaries who work can avoid the Medicare late enrollment penalty.
— Signing up for Medicare after you missed the Initial Enrollment Period can trigger penalties.
— Be prepared to get a Medicare bill.
— Don’t wait until age 65 to start researching your Medicare options.
Consider each of these strategies if you plan to enroll in Medicare while delaying claiming Social Security.
Social Security and Medicare Are Separate Decisions
There’s no need to enroll in both programs in the same year. “Most people take Social Security earlier than 65, but there’s a penalty for that, and you get less per month if you start earlier,” says Dr. Linda Fried, a medical doctor and professor of public health at Columbia University. For example, if you sign up for both Social Security and Medicare simultaneously at age 65, but your Social Security full retirement age is 66, you will only receive 93.3% of the Social Security benefit you have earned due to starting Social Security payments early.
[Read: How Much You Will Get From Social Security.]
Some People Are Automatically Enrolled in Medicare
Existing Social Security recipients are often automatically signed up for Medicare Part A and Part B, and the coverage begins the month they turn 65. A Medicare card generally arrives in the mail three months before your 65th birthday, and Medicare Part B premiums are withheld from your Social Security check.
“People can (sign up for Social Security) as early as age 62. If they do so before the age of 65, they will be automatically enrolled in Medicare three months before they turn 65,” says David Santana, a health insurance specialist for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. “They will receive a Welcome to Medicare package in the mail indicating they have been enrolled in Medicare Part A and B.” However, if you want to delay signing up for Social Security until age 66 or later in order to get your full or an enhanced monthly payment, you will need to take action to sign up for Medicare.
Sign Up for Medicare On Time
You first become eligible to sign up for Medicare during the seven-month period that begins three months before your 65th birthday. If you don’t sign up for Medicare during this Initial Enrollment Period, you could be charged a late enrollment penalty for as long as you have Medicare. “Those who are not automatically enrolled because they did not receive Social Security retirement will have to be proactive and apply for Medicare,” Santana says.
Medicare Parts B and D both have late enrollment penalties. Monthly Part B premiums increase by 10% for each 12-month period you delay enrolling in Medicare Part B after becoming eligible for it. The Medicare Part D late enrollment penalty kicks in if you go as little as 63 days without credible prescription drug coverage and increases the longer you go without insurance. Both late enrollment penalties could be added to your premiums for as long as you have Medicare if you don’t sign up during the seven-month enrollment period around your 65th birthday.
Medicare supplement insurance plans have a different open enrollment period that begins when you are 65 or older and enrolled in Medicare Part B, after which you could be charged significantly higher premiums or even denied the right to purchase a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan. “Even if you want to hold off on signing up for Social Security, you shouldn’t hold off on signing up for Medicare,” says Mark Duggan, an economics professor at Stanford University. “In those first several months there are some important decisions that people need to make about Medicare, including enrolling in Part D and a Medigap plan.” The actions you take (or fail to take) in the months around your 65th birthday may affect how much you pay for Medicare for the rest of your life.
[See: 10 Ways to Increase Your Social Security Payments.]
Beneficiaries Who Work Can Avoid the Late Enrollment Penalty
If you or your spouse are working and covered by a group health insurance plan, you can avoid Medicare’s late enrollment penalties if you sign up for benefits within eight months of leaving the job or the coverage ending. However, retiree health insurance and COBRA coverage through a former employer do not qualify as coverage that allows you to avoid the penalty. And if your group health plan coverage ends during the seven-month period around your 65th birthday, you will not qualify for the extra eight-month extension to sign up for Medicare.
Signing Up After You Missed the Initial Enrollment Period
If you didn’t sign up for Medicare near your 65th birthday, there’s an open enrollment period each year between Jan. 1 and March 31, and your coverage could start on July 1 of the same year. However, you will have a penalty amount added to your premiums based on how long you went without group health insurance coverage. “If you do it during the general enrollment period, meaning you did not do it at your first opportunity, it’s very likely that if you don’t qualify for a special enrollment period, you would have to pay a penalty,” Santana says.
Be Prepared to Get a Medicare Bill
Most people who receive Social Security payments have their Medicare Part B premiums automatically withheld from their checks. However, if you sign up for Medicare before claiming Social Security, you will get a bill for Medicare Part B. The standard Medicare Part B premium is $144.60 per month in 2020. A retiree who signs up for Medicare at age 65 in 2020 but delays claiming Social Security until age 66 will need to pay $1,735.20 in Medicare Part B premiums out of pocket over the course of the full calendar year. Once you sign up for Social Security, you can instead elect to have these premiums deducted from your Social Security payments. Retirees with incomes above $87,000 for individuals and $174,000 for married couples also pay higher Medicare premiums, ranging from $202.40 to $491.60, with the highest-income retirees being charged the highest premiums.
[Read: Medicare Out-of-Pocket Costs You Should Expect to Pay.]
Don’t Wait Until Age 65 to Start Researching Your Medicare Options
Signing up for Medicare requires you to make a variety of important decisions, including selecting the Medicare Part D plan in your area that best covers the medications you use, finding a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan to fill in some of traditional Medicare’s out-of-pocket costs or choosing to go with a private sector Medicare Advantage Plan instead of traditional Medicare. “Thinking about it two or three years out makes a lot of sense so that you can make good decisions,” Duggan says. Shopping around and meeting the enrollment deadlines will help you cover your health care needs at the lowest possible cost.
More from U.S. News
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10 Social Security Rules Everyone Should Know
How to Apply for Medicare Without Claiming Social Security originally appeared on usnews.com
Update 07/06/20: This story was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.
