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* By shopping with our third-party insurance agency partners. You may be in contact with a licensed insurance agent from an independent agency that is not connected with or endorsed by the federal Medicare program.
We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1–800– MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.
Aging in – For millions of Americans, eligibility for Medicare is somewhat automatic – as straightforward as reaching their 65th birthday.
If you’re aging into Medicare, there’s a lot you can do to ensure that you end up with the right Medicare plan – and that you don’t incur unnecessary costs (including penalties) along the way. Your plan costs, your Medicare benefits, your enrollment windows – and the penalties for missing them – all depend on your plan-buying decisions.
Learn how seniors age in to Medicare.
Eligibility due to a disability – Although most Medicare beneficiaries are eligible due to their age, about 14% of all Medicare beneficiaries are under 65. That’s because people also become eligible for Medicare due to having a disability for at least two years, or being diagnosed with ALS or end-stage renal disease.
Who’s not eligible? – Some Americans are not eligible to enroll in Medicare because they haven’t lived in the United States for at least five years.
Learn whether you’re eligible for the various Medicare plans.
Most new Medicare beneficiaries opt to go with one of these coverage scenarios:
The options you choose will define the range of benefits and services covered, your access to providers and your out-of-pocket costs, as well as your flexibility in changing your options down the road if you’re not satisfied with your plan.
The enrollment process for those options is different – each with its own enrollment windows and corresponding penalties for missing those windows, including
How you go through the enrollment process depends on whether you’re comfortable and confident doing plan research on the internet, or whether you feel like you need personal interaction with a broker or agent. (If you’d like to talk to a licensed agent about your coverage options, you can call the number at the top of this page.)
If you do decide to enroll online, here’s the information you’ll need.
For 2023 coverage, put these enrollment opportunities on your calendar:
Medicare beneficiaries change their coverage for a variety of reasons, including changes in provider networks, increases in premiums, the availability of new plan benefits, and changes in Part D formularies – as well as changes in beneficiaries’ own situations.
Read more here:
If you choose to go with a Medigap plan, you should definitely take note of the fact that Medigap plans aren’t guaranteed issue in most states after your initial enrollment period ends. That means if you apply for a Medigap policy later on – either for the first time, or because you want to switch plans – the carrier generally has the option of denying the application or charging you a higher premium based on the company’s underwriting requirements.
There are limited guaranteed-issue opportunities for Medigap plans after the initial enrollment window (including the one-time trial right period described above), and a few states have annual opportunities for people to enroll in Medigap on a guaranteed-issue basis (in most cases, this is just an opportunity to switch to a different plan, rather than newly enroll).
If you’re already receiving Social Security or Railroad Retirement benefits at least four months before you turn 65, you’ll be automatically enrolled in Medicare and your Medicare card will be mailed to you about three months before you turn 65, with your coverage taking effect the first of the month you turn 65 (at this point you’ll have a chance to reject Part B if you choose to do so, but make sure you know all the ins and outs of that beforehand).
If you’re not yet receiving Social Security or Railroad Retirement benefits prior to turning 65, you will not be automatically enrolled in Medicare. Instead, you’ll need to apply for Medicare through the Social Security Administration, which will then send your Medicare card to you.
A common misconception about Medicare is that it’s a free government safety net that awaits beneficiaries when they reach retirement. The fact is, each type of Medicare coverage does have its own costs, similar to other health insurance you’ve purchased over the years.
So expect premiums, deductibles, copays, and coinsurance (although supplemental coverage may pay some or all of the cost-sharing for you). Also, expect those costs to change each year.
Here’s a look at the plan costs for 2023.
There is assistance available for beneficiaries who may have difficulty paying for Medicare expenses – including premiums and out-of-pocket costs. Many lower-income beneficiaries are eligible for help via the Medicaid system, which includes Medicare Savings Programs as well as full dual-eligibility for both Medicare and Medicaid.