Toni,
I have a quite different problem concerning how to enroll in Medicare from any enrollment problem that I have read in your column. I understand from an email a friend received from Medicare.gov that starting Jan. 1, there are new turning-65 Medicare enrollment rules.
I have rheumatoid arthritis and my prescriptions are expensive. I turn 65 on Feb. 20 and need my Medicare to begin May 1; my husband is retiring and losing his company benefits as of that date.
I am a non-working spouse and do not have enough work quarters to receive Medicare on my own. I do not know how to apply using my husband’s Medicare benefits. What do I do?
— Mary Ann, Hempstead, Texas
Mary Ann,
On Nov. 17, Medicare did send out an email saying there are changes to enrolling in Medicare when turning 65, beginning Jan. 1. The change involves the start date of your Medicare Part B coverage, which now begins the first day of the month after you sign up, if you sign up during the last three months of your initial enrollment period.
Before this change, if you signed up during the last three months of your initial enrollment period, your Medicare Part B coverage started two to three months after you enrolled.
It is so important to plan to be sure that you are enrolling in Medicare correctly, Mary Ann. Because you are short the 40 quarters of working and paying taxes to qualify under your Social Security number for your Medicare, you will have to qualify under your husband’s Social Security number for your Medicare (assuming he has the 40 quarters to qualify).
Call your local Social Security office or Social Security’s main number at 800-772-1213 to arrange an appointment, either over the phone or at a local Social Security office, and ask how to apply under your husband’s work record. You will need an original certified marriage license to show Social Security.
Set up an account at ssa.gov before talking with a Social Security representative. Social Security will want you to enroll in Medicare online by visiting ssa.gov/benefits/medicare. You may go online and enroll in Medicare while talking with the representative that is guiding you through this process. Because you are short of the 40 work quarters, the process is a bit more complicated than for someone who is turning 65 and applying using their own benefits. (Chapter 1 of my Medicare Survival Guide Advanced edition explains enrolling in Medicare in detail.)
Medicare’s initial enrollment period is the seven-month period that includes the three months before turning 65, the month you turn 65 and three months after turning 65. Here is a summary of the Medicare initial enrollment period seven-month timeline schedule:
— If enrolling anytime three months before turning 65, your Medicare begins the first day of the month you turn 65. In your case, Mary Ann, since you will turn 65 on Feb. 20, you can enroll in Medicare Parts A and/or B in November, December or January (the three months prior period) for a Feb. 1 effective date.
— If enrolling the month you turn 65, Medicare will begin the first day of the next month. Mary Ann, you can enroll in February and your Medicare will begin March 1.
— If enrolling one month after you turn 65, your Medicare will begin on the first day of the next month. Mary Ann, if you enroll in March, your Medicare begins April 1.
— If enrolling two months after you turn 65, your Medicare will begin the next month. Mary Ann, if you enroll in April, your Medicare will begin May 1.
— If enrolling three months after you turn 65, your Medicare will begin the next month. Mary Ann, if you enroll in May (three months after the month you turn 65), your Medicare will begin June 1.
Mary Ann, since you want your Medicare to begin May 1, I would advise you to enroll in Medicare in April, and that is when you would want to schedule your appointment with Social Security to explain your enrollment situation of not having enough quarters.
Toni King is an author and columnist on Medicare and health insurance issues. She spent more than 27 years as a top sales leader in the field. For a Medicare checkup, email info@tonisays.com or call 832-519-8664. You can visit seniorresource.com/medicare-moments to listen to her Medicare Moments podcasts and get other information for seniors.