04/29/2024
5 Medicare rules📏 to know when receiving Medicare while working. No matter the reason why you're working while retired. Here's 5 things to help you navigate the confusion about Medicare and private insurance.
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1. You can keep Medicare and enroll in employer coverage at the same time
You don’t have to disenroll from Medicare in order to sign up for a private health insurance plan offered by your employer. You can have both. Alternatively, you can continue your current Medicare coverage and ignore your new employer’s health insurance offerings entirely.
-The group health plan pays first and Medicare pays second if the employer has 20 or more workers.
-Medicare pays first, and the group health plan pays second if the employer has less than 20 workers and isn’t part of a multiple-employer group health plan.
2. You can’t sign up for or contribute to an HSA
One health insurance plan is off the table if you decide to enroll in your company’s coverage — a health savings account.
3. Decide if it makes sense to drop Part B
Original Medicare is made of two parts: Part A, which covers hospital stays and Part B, which covers doctor visits and other expenses.
- Over 90 percent of beneficiaries don’t pay any monthly premiums for Part A because they paid into the system via payroll taxes when they were working. So it makes sense to keep your Part A coverage when you return to work — for most people, there’s no monthly cost for the coverage.
- Part B is different. You’ll keep paying the monthly premium, even if you start working again and enroll in a workplace plan — unless you drop your Part B coverage.
- Most people who drop Part B after going back to work do so to save money. But unenrolling can be tricky, and it isn’t an option for everyone.
4. Don’t miss your special enrollment period
Dropping your Part B coverage when you return to work might save you money, but you’ll eventually want that coverage back once you stop working again.
- After you enroll in Medicare during your SEP, your coverage typically starts on the first of the following month.
- If you miss your special enrollment period, you can sign up during the next general enrollment period, which takes place each year from Jan. 1 to March 31.
5. Watch out for late enrollment penalties
If you miss your Medicare special enrollment period, you could face stiff lifetime penalties. The longer you wait, the more you’ll have to pay for Medicare — and those added fees never go away.
There are two late enrollment penalties to be aware of:
- Part B: If you miss your eight-month SEP, you could face a 10 percent increase to your Part B premium for each 12-month period you could have enrolled but didn’t.
- Part D: If you go without creditable drug coverage for more than 63 days, you could face a penalty based on the number of months you delayed enrollment.
💥💥💥 Key dates during the year: 💥💥💥
September - Annual notice of change - Private plans are required to send a notice each fall if there will be any changes in cost, coverage, or service area. These changes go into effect January of the coming year.
October 15th - December 7th - open enrollment period OEP or AEP (annual enrollment period) - make changes to plans, change to Medicare advantage or change carrier. Medicare Advantage and Part D Prescription Drug plans begin accepting applications for the upcoming year. The open enrollment period ends December 7 and new plans go into effect January 1.
January 1st - March 31st - General enrollment period GEP. If you did not enroll in Medicare you can sign up for Part B from January 1 to March 31. Signing up through the GEP means you will have to pay a Part B premium penalty.
January 1 – March 31 - Medicare advantage open enrollment period. During the MA OEP you can make changes only if you have a Medicare Advantage Plan. You can switch to a different Medicare Advantage Plan or Original Medicare, with or without drug coverage. You cannot make any changes if you have Original Medicare
November – April - Flu season - Medicare Part B covers 100 percent of the cost of a flu shot once ever flu season with no Part B deductible required.
Initial Enrollment Period IEP - Seven months -
The seven-month period including the three months before, the month of, and the three months after your 65th birthday. During this time you can enroll in Medicare.
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Know these Medicare rules before getting a job in retirement.
