You’re right, I was thinking ‘SS’!
I never understood, if one has coverage why do they require the 65 yr old crowd to drop it and take Medicare?
“I never understood, if one has coverage why do they require the 65 yr old crowd to drop it and take Medicare?”
First, “Medicare has special rules that apply to beneficiaries who have group health plan coverage through their own or their spouse’s current employment. Group health plans of employers with 20 or more employees must offer these people the same health insurance benefits under the same conditions that younger workers and spouses receive.” http://www.medicare.gov/choices/employer.asp
But for employers not bound by this rule, the rationale is because 65-year olds cost much more than the average employee. Thus, it’s cheaper to rely on tax-financed health care as the primary payer and just use the employer coverage as supplemental coverage to fill in gaps in Medicare (e.g., to cover deductibles and cost-sharing or services not covered by Medicare).
You do not have to sign up for Medicare at 65, however if you wait until the next "open enrolment" period, the premium goes up. The longer you wait the higher the premium rises. In fact the pressure to sign up for Medicare usually arises from your current insurance carrier dropping you at 65. If your employer still carries you on your companies insurance program, you can sign up for Medicare as a supplemental coverage (until you retire) and lock in the lower premiums.
Regards,
GtG