How to Apply for Medicare
Are you nearing Medicare eligibility but left wondering how to apply for Medicare? Well, some people get Medicare Parts A and B automatically and others have to manually enroll.
How to apply for Medicare Parts A and B
Some people are enrolled automatically, but some people have to sign up for it.
If you have, or will be getting, benefits from Social Security or the Railroad Retirement Board at least four months before you turn 65 you will be automatically enrolled.
If you’re going to be eligible for Medicare due to a disability, you’ll be automatically enrolled if you have received disability benefits from Social Security for 24 months or certain disability benefits from the RRB for 24 months.
Anyone with ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease) is automatically enrolled the month their disability benefits begin.
Everyone else will have to enroll manually.
You can enroll in Medicare at www.socialsecurity.gov, by calling them at 1-800-772-1213, or in person at your local Social Security Office.
Applying for Medicare Advantage
If you are eligible for Medicare Parts A and B, you are eligible for a Part C plan.
You will have to enroll in Parts A and B before you purchase an Advantage plan and you cannot drop them.
To apply, you’ll have to contact a Medicare insurance broker like Senior Medicare Advisors. You can do this during your initial enrollment period (when you are first eligible for Medicare) or during the annual enrollment period which runs from October 15 to December 7 every year.
How to apply for Medicare Part D
You’ll have to purchase a standalone plan or receive it through a Medicare Advantage plan. You’ll do this through a Medicare insurance broker.
The best time to get this plan is during your initial enrollment period for Medicare to avoid a late penalty.
Purchasing a Medicare Supplement
Once again, the way to do this is through a Medicare insurance broker like Senior Medicare Advisors.
Like Part D, the best time to get a Medicare Supplement is during your initial enrollment period because that is the only time you can get one with no medical questions asked.
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