In the April and June I wrote about four Medicare mistakes to avoid. Here are mistakes 5 and 6 that can trip you up.
#5 Misunderstanding Enrollment Periods:
You may have read about ‘Open Enrollment’ and gotten the idea that this is the only time you can sign up for Medicare. Not True! In Medicare, open enrollment (Oct. 15 to Dec. 7 each year) is only for people who are already in the program and want to change their coverage for the following year.
If you’re coming into Medicare for the first time, you get your own enrollment period – either at the time you turn 65, or throughout the time you have Employer Group Insurance or your spouse’s employer plan. If you miss the personal deadlines because you’re waiting for open enrollment, you risk delayed coverage and late penalties.
#6 Not realizing that you may qualify for extra help to lower costs:
Medicare comes with many expenses – premiums, deductibles, co-pays – that many people find hard to pay. So if your income is limited, be sure to check out two programs that if you qualify can reduce those costs. The ‘Medicare Savings Program’ and the ‘Federal Extra Help’ programs are two ways to help you reduce your Medicare Part B and D costs. To see if you qualify, contact your state Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) by going to www.shiptacenter.org and select your state.
Thanks for reading!
This article comes from Ray’s Report which is the monthly newsletter we send to all our clients. You can subscribe to receive it by email for free!
P.S. Be looking for your annual ‘Notice of Changes’ letter from your PDP OR MAPD Company coming in October 2016.