One of the most common questions (concerns) when I first speak with my clients is regarding if and when they must enroll in Medicare Part B.  This arises as they either read about it, heard it from a friend or received correspondence stating they “had” to enroll but gave no clarifications.   I also find many should have enrolled and did not know they needed to enroll.  There are several key clarifications.

In short, people who become eligible for Medicare while they are working and on their employer’s health plan (or spouse’s) do not “need” to enroll in Medicare if they work for a company with 20 or more employees.   If they work for a company with less than 20 employees, they do need to enroll in Medicare because it will be considered primary coverage to their small company’s health plan.  Confused yet?

Regardless of whether or not they need to enroll in Medicare Parts A and B, the first thing I help prospective clients with, is to determine if they should stay on their company’s health plan or move to Medicare.  This involves comparing the incremental cost to move from the employer plan to Medicare coverages.  In most cases, Medicare coverages (including supplemental) is richer coverage than most employer plans.

A recent article just noted that over 750,000 Medicare beneficiaries have made the mistake of not enrolling when they should have and will be paying penalties averaging 30% for the rest of their lives.  As a result of complaints, Congress is considering legislation to help address this problem.  What is also interesting, is this figure does not talk about the number of beneficiaries who do enroll in Medicare needlessly and are spending potentially thousands of unnecessary dollars.  If you want to read more about this, you can follow the link to the article: http://www.philly.com/philly/health/20160803_How_to_save_big_on_Medicare__Know_when_to_sign_up.html

If you have questions about Medicare, call me, with no cost or obligation.  This is what I do and enjoy it.

Based in the Richmond, Va area, David Higgs of Choices In Medicare specializes in helping seniors transition to Medicare.  He can be reached at email:  David@ChoicesInMedicare.com or go to website:  www.ChoicesInMedicare.com