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Medicare question

R

rrlund

Well-known Member
I got one of those Social Security statements in the mail yesterday telling me how much I can draw at different ages. At the bottom,it said I have enough points to qualify for Medicare at 65 whether I retire or not. I have no intention of retiring and taking Social Security,but what's the deal with the Medicare if I take that at 65? Do I have to pay a premium like I do to Blue Cross only cheaper or what? I'm not familiar with this getting something for nothing stuff. I've always thought you get what you pay for. Yes,I've paid a lot to Social Security over the years,but that was then,this is now.
 
Hello rrlund,


You will get Medicare when you reach your age of retirement. They will take the medicare premiums out of your monthly check. You can get SS NOW! I don't see your reasoning not to take the money now. You can't make it up by having a litlle bigger check at your retirement age,

Guido.
 
Randy, I am not an authority on this, but I retired at 66 and was told to sign up for medicare before 65 if you used it or not. Best to contact your local SS office and get it straight from the people who are SUPPOSED to know. Wife tried to call there and got no answer or a runaround-- went there and got good, proper answers face to face.
 
Yes you will have to pay the premimum.The only reason to delay SS is to build the amount that you draw. It depends on how much you have paid in. If you draw it it will add to your income which will likely raise your Income Tax. Of corse all of this is subject to amount of income etc. Like someone said contact your SS office and put the pencil to the various Scenarios.
 
There's $400 a month difference between 62 and 66 and two months. Another $500 a month difference between 66 and two months and 70. That's gonna compound year after year with the annual increases. I don't plan to die soon. I'll live long enough for it to pay off in the end. I just wondered about the whole "Having enough points" thing to get the Medicare before I take the Social Security.

This whole taking SS early thing is like the father who offered his two sons a choice,50 cents a week allowance,or a penny a month that doubled every month for a year. One took the 50 cents,one took the penny. Do the math and see who was better off at the end of the year. If the wife wants hers at 62,she can take it,but I'm letting mine compound.
 
It said to contact SS at least two months before I turn 65 if I want Medicare before I retire. I guess I'll have to wait until the time comes. If the premium is more than Blue Cross after the available tax credit I can claim,I might be nuts to take the Medicare. Trouble is,I'll have to sign up for the tax credit on the Blue Cross that year,six months before I'll be eligible for Medicare.
 
I retired at 60 when GM shut down the Lansing plants, worked 42+a few months, wanted to work 50. Was told to sign up for SS at 62 because waiting a few years wouldn't give me that much more in the long run. When I signed up for Medicare, it became my primary insurance, then my other insurance became the secondary. Medicare is taken right out of SS. I think part of what is dragging SS down is all these younger "disabled" people getting SSI and draining it. They should never have let lawyers advertise on TV.
 
Randy, I think you can actually be penalized for not signing up for Medicare within a few months of your 65th birthday. Penalized in the form of a higher Medicare premium when you do sign up late. I jumped right on it about two - three months before my 65th birthday, and it was surprisingly easy and fast. As others said - a face to face meeting will get you some good advice. Make an early morning or right after noon appointment to minimize waiting room time.
 
There are a few more complications to consider:

Medicare part A is free and automatic at 65.

As long as you are working in a job with qualifying health insurance, you do not have to take Medicare part B. However, your employers and their health insurance program may require you to take part B and make the insurance program the secondary payer. Sometimes (my case) they decide to do that after the fact. I'd suggest checking on that now.

At 65 you may lose part of your SS based on your earned income. At 66 you don't have to take that reduction (payback).

The general rule about retirement calculations is you have to live past 85 to come out better by delaying your benefits. That's a steep hurdle for most of us based on family history.
 
There are a lot of pitfalls to retirement and a lot of efforts by the government to get what they can from you as well as a lot of inequality. I always paid maximum SS all my working life. I have a small company retirement. My 401K had a net loss of 8.5% last year. I cashed in some 401k and bought a new car. I paid 10% tax up front an 401k withdrawal. I had to cash in more 401K to pay my $10,000 tax bill even though I lost 8.5% for the year. I have a house and 10 not so valuable acres. My tax bill exceeded my total company retirement by $2,000 dollars. My attitude further deterated when one of my friends, whos entire family drives new or late model cars and lives in a new 2 story house, told me he had not paid any income tax in 20years further his son who works for him draws a 2500 dollar income equlazition return every year. It is past time for a simplified income tax reform. Understan, I am 80+ years old and havent earned a dollar in 15 years.
 
Some where around 83+ or - is the break even point. Live longer than that you're better off deferring. Most people don't but everyone is different.
They take about $104 per month out of SS for Part B. I have Medicare Advantage and it is one of our lowest cost items. Then again were healthly.
Take it at 65 no doubt.
 
Medicare is NOT "something for nothing". You have been paying into it for as long as you have been a wage earner! It is something you EARNED! If you do not sign up when you are eligible, you will pay whatever exorbitant cost that a doctor or hospital feels like stiffing you for. And good luck with your health care plan paying those costs, you will be on your own!!
 
so far you become eligible for medicare at 65. well worth it. now comes the tricky part. you need to find a supplement. find the wrong insurance salesman and they get u so over insured, they should be lined up and shot. your supplement is changeable once a year. only buy the insurance you need for your health now. remember that your hospitalization is already paid; it's the doctor appt that are only 80% covered. most people don't spend $400 a year on uncovered stuff. part D is for drugs. all blood tests are free.
 
Medicare has nothing to do with whether you're retired or not. If you are working past 65 and covered by you're employer you don't have to sign up. But you have to sign up within a certain time frame when you do retire. Be careful on extra earnings with SS. After 66 you can earn all you want without losing benefits but at a certain earning level part or all of your SS becomes taxable. I retired in '14 and got hit with that because I worked half the year. Got hit and again in '15.
 
I don't have employer health insurance. I'm self employed and have to pay for it. I just wondered if there was a Medicare premium at 65 if I don't take the SS. The new tax credit makes paying for my own insurance easier than it's ever been. My wife is younger than I am,so I assume I'll have to keep Blue Cross on her anyway. I guess I'll have to find out when the time comes if I'm better off with Blue Cross on both of us or not. Sounds like I'll be out at the very least,$100 a month for Medicare. If I can't save that much off the Blue cross by dropping it for myself but still paying it on the wife,there's no sense taking it. It might be like dropping full coverage insurance on an old pickup was one time. It only saved me $50 every six months. Not worth it if I'd have totaled the pickup.
 
I've talked to too many people who've told me this whole taking it at 62 thing is a suckers game. Too many think they can take it early and put the money in the bank and come out ahead. What can you make at the bank,a quarter percent interest? The government will give you 8% if you let them hang on to it. Then the average CPI inflation is near 2%. So if you wait,take the 8% extra and let it compound every year with the CPI increases,this whole living to 85 to make up the difference is bunk. As long as I've got enough land and cattle to make a living and good enough health to make it work,let the money slide and the interest compound. Even if I don't live long enough to make the difference,my wife is younger and will likely out live me by quite a little bit and her survivors benefit will be more.
The folks who work for SS and tell you these things are paid to tell you that. I don't think the goal of the Social Security Administration is to give you the best deal.
 
I figured mine out a few years ago.
If I retire I will have to live to age 80 to justify waiting past 62 to retire.
In other words at age 80 I will have collected the same money (give or take $250) if I retire at age 62; 66.8;or 70.
If I live past age 80 waiting till I was 70 or even 66.8 will pay off over retiring at 62.

If I can figure out how to pay for my and mostly wife's (she is 6 yrs younger) health insurance without my company sponsored plan; I am going to hang it up at 62 and go fishing.
 
You're right, you will be penalized if you don't take your medicare when you turn 65. Part A is free but be prepared to PAY for parts BC&D. I have part A and VA. Medicare won't pay for my copay at VA because they are both Gov't. What a crock of Bull. Don't like medicare at all. Just my opinion. Keith
 
The thing is,they told me last year it would be $1492 at 66 and 2. This year,they say $1542 at the same age. If I take it at 62,I'm locked in to what they'll pay at that age,plus the CPI increase. If I wait the extra four years to 66 and 2,who knows what I might get. Could be more than 16 or 1700,then the CPI increases would compound on top of that. At 70,right now they're saying an additional 500 a month.
Taking it at 62 is like getting suckered by those TV commercials offering pennies on the dollar for your structured settlement,or like me selling my calves instead of finishing them out and getting twice the price for them when I have the feed and the time to finish them.
 
One other thing to consider, if your wife is eligible to draw at 62, what is the amount she can draw off of her SS versus what she could get if she drew off of yours? She can't draw off yours till you take yours if she never had to pay SS Tax in. Study the chart to see what differences it would make. It can change what your totals are in the long run.
SS benefits chart
 
Pretty much everyone who came in here this year who was on Medicare for 12 months paid the same amount. Like the man said, just over $104 per month. I see a lot of them.
 
I got my calculator out and did the Math. Drawing at 62 or waiting until 66. According to my calculations I would have come out ahead at the age of 76 1/2 by waiting until I was 66 to draw.
I have already had a bout with cancer so I decided to draw at 62. As others say you are restricted to the amount of money you can make if you draw early until your 66. I'm hoping I'm here at 76 1/2 to kick myself in the butt.
 
I was hoping you'd chime in. I'd still have to carry Blue Cross on the wife though,right?

Also,is that $104 a month Medicare premium,tax deductible like the Blue Cross premium is? Not eligible for a tax credit,but tax deductible?
 
I remember when 50 looked like it was old. Right now,76 and a half doesn't seem all that far off. I think I'd rather have the extra income then,when I might have fewer cattle and more time to enjoy it.
 
She made good money working as a nurse for a lot of years,so she should have a good chunk coming on her own account. Her statement hasn't come yet,so I don't know exactly what her numbers are right now.
 
You don't have to sign up for Social Security to sign up for Medicare. I signed up for Medicare two years ago without taking Social Security. You'll be billed, you can choose monthly, quarterly, semi-annual or yearly. Part A is normally free, Part B is currently $104.90 a month IF you sign up in your 65 window. If you sign up later, there is a 10% penalty for each 12 month period after 65 before you sign up. For example, if you wait until 67 to sign up, you'll pay 20% over the base rate, 68 would be plus 30%. And that higher rate continues as long as you're on Medicare, so you need to think over how much it will cost you extra over the years if you hold off on signing up for Medicare.
 
So it's age specific in years then,not necessarily in years and months? Like I've said,if I claim the tax credit for insurance pemiums in December for the following year when I'll turn 65 in June,I could keep taking the Blue Cross and the tax credit until I'm 65 and six months the following December,without any penalty? I'd just hate to go through the hassle of dropping the insurance and credit on myself,but trying to keep it up on my wife that year. Might be a nightmare.
 
I'm late to the party, but there's lots of misinformation on here.

Part A is free, but you have to sign up for it within a few months of your 65th birthday, or they penalize you with higher premiums on Part B for the rest of your life. Part A is basically hospitalization.

Part B is $104 a month. A and B together are about like conventional health insurance, but you'll still have significant deductibles. You don't have to take it at 65, but I can't imagine you on your wife's Blue Cross will be less than that, even with the tax deduction. Only way to find out is to check with wife's employer about your cost. BTW, being self employed, you get to deduct all your Medicare costs anyhow.

Don't know what Part C is- It may be like a Class B motor home- nobody knows what that is, either.

Part D is prescriptions, but you can generally get a Medicare Advantage plan that includes prescriptions, for about the same price as straight Part D.

I sure have had better luck with Medicare than the insurance I had previously. Have had a $21,000 knee operation and a $14,000 heart workup, and my share was $300 on the former, $250 on the latter. No deductibles (thanks to the Advantage plan). I do have to pay a $50 copay for office visits (would be less with a higher premium Advantage plan), but am fairly healthy, so those don't add up to anywhere near what the difference in premium is.

My Advantage plan is $70 a month, so I'm paying $174. I've been self employed for 20 years- at first I was on wife's Blue Cross- cost kept going up, and when it hit $500 a month, I bolted and got my own Health Savings Account. Better, only $250 a month, but $4,000 deductible. Going on Medicare was a real plus- about the only way staying on conventional insurance would be better is if someone else is paying for it.


As for when to start SS, I think you're right on target. You DEFINITELY don't want to start before age 66 unless you actually retire, because you get dinged a dollar of SS for every $2 you make over about $12,000 a year. At age 66, its a closer question, because then you can make as much as you want and not get dinged. You will likely have to pay income tax on 85% of your SS, but hey, its the easiest money you'll ever make. I decided to take it at 66, even though I'm still working, because we could use the extra money to add to our retirement funds and travel a little more. And we got in on the loophole (closing in April) where spouse can draw half of mine, while hers continues to grow until age 70.

I know a lot of guys in physical jobs are about "all in" at 62, and if you just can't cut the mustard anymore, then retire at 62 and start drawing. Just be aware that you'll be drawing 25% less for the rest of your life, and your compounding through cost of living increases will also be correspondingly smaller. I think the argument about "beating the system" by drawing early is the wrong approach, and is only valid if you have several hundred grand in retirement savings, so you can supplement your SS later on so you don't live like a pauper in retirement.
 
I retired at 53 and carried catastrophes health insurance. Problem was the companies kept dropping the insurance plans for everybody. Then it was time to look for another one. Always figured I could absorb a $5000 expense.

I started taking my SS at 62 and Medicare at 65. I am now at the rip old age of seventy nine. My father received one SS check before he passed away. Not a very good mandatory investment on his part.

When I was 71 I went in for a quadruple bypass. First time I was in a hospital since I was six years old The bypass bill came to about $136,000. My expensed amounted to $1,600. When I was 78 I went in to the emergency room for a kidney stone. Three days in the hospital. Never saw the bill for that stay.

If you are going to figure out where the break even is on your SS you have go consider that a certain portion of your benefits may be taxable as regular income. I presently have 85% of my SS taxed as income. The tax is figured based on your income.

I think the basic SS is a poor investment except for the Medicare part.
 
Yes, it would be tax deductible for you, because you're self employed and not covered by your wife's employer's plan (which you would quit when you went on Medicare). I'm assuming that your wife's plan doesn't cover you for free- I think only the guvment and the unions still have those kinds of plans, and even those may have gone by the wayside under external_linkcare.

I think what triggers higher premiums on Part B is if you don't sign up for Part A at 65, not whether you sign up for Part B at that time.

Another wrinkle- if you are drawing SS, your Part B is paid by a deduction from your SS check. Those in that situation did not get a premium increase on Part B this year- still $104.90. But if you pay for Part B yourself (because you're not on SS yet), you got a hefty premium increase this year- I think something like 30%. Figure out the rationale on that one!

There are some other considerations if both of you are on Medicare, but your wife is younger, so they're not relevant to this discussion.
 
The wife doesn't have an employer Blue Cross plan. She doesn't work anymore. It's just self employed farm income for the two of us. We have an individual Blue Cross plan on the two of us. I'll take the Medicare at 65 I guess if there's a penalty for not taking it. I honestly don't even know if I can get a Blue Cross individual plan beyond 65 anyway. I'll have to keep it on her though I guess. I have to believe that at $174 a month,even loosing the tax credit,I'd be money ahead if the premium is at least tax deductible.
 

Quoted from the 2016 Medicare manual- "If you didn't sign up for Part A (if you have to buy it) and/or Part B (for which you must pay premiums) during your Initial Enrollment Period, you can sign up between January 1-March 31 each year. Your coverage won't start until July 1 of that year, and you may have to pay a higher Part A and/or Part B premium for late enrollment."
 
Ok,if it doesn't kick in until July,it sounds like I'd need to call them the previous December instead of waiting until April before I turned 65 that following June.
 
Good to know. For way too many years the health insurance premiums weren't even deductible. I paid them with the first dollar. I still have to pay 15.2% Social Security Self Employment tax on every dollar I pay out of pocket in premiums because it's only a personal deduction and not a business deduction. It'd be nice to get a break somewhere along the line.
 
That quote from the manual was for anyone who didn't enroll at 65 and signed up later. Your Initial Enrollment Period starts 3 months before the month in which you turn 65, and ends three months after your birth month. Quoting again from the manual-"If you sign up for Part A and/or Part B during the first 3 months of you Initial Enrollment Period, in most cases, your coverage starts the first day of your birthday month. However, if your birthday is on the first day of the month, your coverage will start the first day of the prior month. If you enroll the month you turn 65 or during the last 3 months of your initial enrollment period, the start date for your Medicare coverage will be delayed."
 
You will get part A automatically and no charge (you already paid for it. Part B will be at least $ 104 if you decide to take it. Sounds like you are already calculating the best way to go here. The country average for full retirement (age 66) right now is $ 1200. The max is $ 2500 and you would have had to make $ 110,000 or more since age 21 to get that.(in which case you shouldn't ever need it) I don't buy for a minute that your amount quoted to you raised $ 100 in one year. Someone screwed up there. If you are banking on that trend for the next 4 yrs and that is swaying your decision then you will be very disappointed. You never said what you would get at 62 but lets say it is $1100 (400 less than 1500 which are your figures) $ 1100 X 48 months = $ 52,800. Divide that by $ 400 ( the extra amount you will get at 66) and you get 132 months or 11 years at which time you will be 77 yrs old. That is your break even point for leaving $ 52,800 on the table. As for "scams" , CPI and annual increases, you must be dreaming. If your geneology suggests that you will be quite healthy at and from age 77 and you think at that age the extra $$ will actually make your time left more enjoyable then by all means take that route. Everyones health and history and projections are fact based and one must lean that way but there are a lot of unforseen circumstances in life and especially in the last 20 yrs of life. You are basing everything of the best case scenario and if you've been that fortunate in your life then more power to you...I might do the same. I chose the other route and will worry about whether I won or lost when I reach 77. (if I do) The last 10 funerals of friends I went to were all under 70 yrs old and 3 of then under 63. All healthy people and half probably were waiting to see 66 to draw. Just sayin'. Good luck , Randy, on which ever way you go. We all have to live with our convictions and our actions and we all see it differently. Happy Easter!
 
Tax credits or not I am thinking the penalty for NOT signing up will cost you more in the long run. The penalty stays with you once you are late signing up.. My wife chose not to take the drug coverage or part D now 4 years latter hers is almost 30% more. Ever body wants to cuss Medicare. I signed up at 65 with a Blue cross supplement. Had massive heart care in 2007 , surgery and 28 days in the hospital over $174,000 nothing on my part. Since 26th of January this year have had two surgeries and 12 days in the hospital. Not all the bills are in but so far my part is zero and I had some very high priced drugs. I encourage any one to go on and take the drug plan. For some time I thought it was a $90 a month waste but sure has paid more than I though about paying in the last 10 years.
 
Randy, I believe you're on the right track for what it sounds like you have in mind. Don't be apprehensive about making an appointment at an SS office and see what they have to say. They should be able to answer any question you have to your satisfaction. I found them to be very helpful. This might be a good time of the year to do it. Sounds like the fields are pretty wet. I know they are in my part of Wisconsin.
 
It didn't go $100 from one statement to the next,it went 50. From 1492 to 1542. Yes,at 62 it just over 1100. Not worth piddling with in my opinion. That 2% CPI is pretty accurate in my estimation. Michigan property tax increases are based on CPI and that's about what we get hit with most years. This year was an exception of course at only three tenths of a percent.
Like I said,as long as I can make a decent living raising cattle,I don't see the sense taking SS at 62 just to give half of it right back in taxes. If I had a job I wanted to get out of,maybe. But I'm not trading a good living for a mere pittance. My income for the next several years will effect my SS contribution,and in turn effect how much I can draw won't it? As long as I'm making decent money.
 
Your calculation overlooked the value of that $52,800 in your pocket when you reach the age of 66. If you don't know what I mean, take out a mortgage for $52,800 and see how much of your monthly payment is interest.

A 15 year loan at 4% would amount to about $10,000 in interest. That's what having the money is worth to you.
 
Sounds like a better deal than the Blue cross I have now. When the wife worked at the hospital and had Blue Cross through her job,there was no deductible as long as we went to that hospital,but that's not the case at all with an individual policy.
 
You get a lot of different advice and I am not going to tell what to do. I retired at 63 and 2 months and am receiving $1,800.00 +a month SS. I started taking it in January and worked until April making little over $13,000.00 . If I would have worked past $14,---.-- I would have had to give one dollar back for every two I made. I went on medicare at 65 during open enrollment period. During that open enrollment period you get on insurance with no medical questions asked.
 
Where are you going to draw 4% on that $52,800 though? I have no debt,so I pay a pretty fair amount to Uncle Sam with no interest deductions. That means I'd pay income tax on what? $1 of every $2 that I draw at 62? That cuts that $52,800 to $34,320 if I have to pay at a 35% tax rate. Like I said,unless something happens so I can't make the kind of money I make now farming,it's just foolish to throw that money down the toilet instead of leaving it right in my SS account to keep growing.
Some people just aren't doing all the math,or they don't still have a good earned income.
 
I got the same thing in an e-mail. I wondered about the medicare. It will be 4 years before early retirement or I can wait until 66 & 9 months and get $380 a month more. But with my family history, if I live past 75 I will have broken a record. So I'll start at 62 and put the money in the bank until the normal retirement and take out $350 a month, at least that's the plan.
What got me was if I was to get "disabled" today, I could more than I would at normal retirement. It's no wonder there are so many getting disability.
 
OK,give back $1 for every $2 that I make. So it's even worse than the response I gave to TomH. I figured 35% of it,based on a 35% tax rate. So it would actually cut his $52,800 example to $26,400. This whole taking it at 62 if you still have a good earned income from self employment is such a scam it should be illegal.
 
Ya,the disability for me was the same as the amount I'd get at 66 and 2.
My Dad and all my uncles lived in to their 80s. My mother is 90 and healthy. No cancer to speak of on either side. Had an aunt on Dad's side that lived well in to her 90s. My mother's grand dad lived to 104. I feel like a million dollars since I've started working out again. I think attitude is as important as anything. I need a challenge and something to do. If I took the money early,and my greatest challenge was how to sit on my backside and keep from making too much money so I didn't have to give up my SS in taxes,I probably would be dead within six months.
If I die early,oh well. At least the wife can draw more in survivors benefits. I'm not gonna know it,but she will.
 
(quoted from post at 16:03:54 03/26/16) I'm late to the party, but there's lots of misinformation on here.

......"As for when to start SS, I think you're right on target. You DEFINITELY don't want to start before age 66 unless you actually retire, because you get dinged a dollar of SS for every $2 you make over about $12,000 a year. At age 66, its a closer question, because then you can make as much as you want and not get dinged.
Click to expand...

Coshoo, Very good summary.

I wanted to comment on getting "dinged" before age 66. This is very often confused to mean the $1 withheld for each $2 earned over $12,000 is lost. It is my understanding that after you reach age 66 your SS payments are re-calculated and the "dinged" amount is added back as increased payments. You do not actually lose any money - SS will pay what is due to you. That is unless you die first.
 
Even if they give it back at 66,wouldn't you be better off to let them keep it and add about 8% to it every year for those four years? Why settle for just getting it back dollar for dollar with no interest?
 
(quoted from post at 18:07:10 03/26/16) Even if they give it back at 66,wouldn't you be better off to let them keep it and add about 8% to it every year for those four years? Why settle for just getting it back dollar for dollar with no interest?
Click to expand...

I don't believe the 8% is interest, but rather the increase in payment amount, since by waiting you will recieve what is due you in a lower number of payments. In other words, bigger checks but less of them. In addition, they don't give it back to you in a lump sum at 66. They re-calculate your payments such that you will get the "dinged" amount back in your expected life time, assuming you live that long. There would be some cost of living increase recouped from the increased payments over time.

Some people simply need the money and take SS as early as possible. In your case, if you don't need the money then you have options. I retired at 57 and started SS at 66.
 
Like the others said you are penalized for not signing up for Medicare at 65. If you are under a qualified insurance plan through your job As a wage earner you can keep that policy and you don't have to sign up for Medicare without penalty. As soon as you quit your job and lose your insurance through your job you then need to sign up for Medicare. You probably carry private insurance so you will need to sign up at 65. When they tell you to start the sign up process three months ahead of time they mean it. You will need to talk to your own insurance company concerning the supplement. To get the supplement process in motion through your insurance company you will need your Medicare number and that sometimes takes some time to get after you sign up. Signing up for Medicare on line is easy. Cancelling your present insurance and having a supplement in place by the time the month you turn 65 rolls around can be even more time consuming. If you and your wife are on a joint policy she will have to get her own single policy if she is younger than you. That takes time too! Lots of things happening at once. I just went through the process two months ago. Marilyn goes on Medicare in August but some of the insurance stuff is already done for her so it will be easier for her than it was for me.
 
You are doing the right thing considering your situation. I was self employed most of my life but it was hard dirty and toxic labor but I enjoyed the outcome as far as job satisfaction. Health slowed me down and the money followed so had a chance to go to work for a factory with 401 K and bennies. Made it 10 yrs which put me at 62 and a lengthy spinal cord/cervicle spine surgery with a lot of nerve damage but surgery saved a whole lot more. Between that and a job that was by far the worst 10 yrs of my working years, it was a no-brainer for me. Factories are just mini versions of our federal Govt and that's all I'm going to say about that. I do agree that with your situation as it is, I'd do the same as you more than likely. By the way, at 65 you can make $ 44,000 before it penalizes your SS.
 
Like the others said you are penalized for not signing up for Medicare at 65. If you are under a qualified insurance plan through your job As a wage earner you can keep that policy and you don't have to sign up for Medicare without penalty. As soon as you quit your job and lose your insurance through your job you then need to sign up for Medicare. You probably carry private insurance so you will need to sign up at 65. When they tell you to start the sign up process three months ahead of time they mean it. You will need to talk to your own insurance company concerning the supplement. To get the supplement process in motion through your insurance company you will need your Medicare number and that sometimes takes some time to get after you sign up. Signing up for Medicare on line is easy. Cancelling your present insurance and having a supplement in place by the time the month you turn 65 rolls around can be even more time consuming. If you and your wife are on a joint policy she will have to get her own single policy if she is younger than you. That takes time too! Lots of things happening at once. I just went through the process two months ago. Marilyn goes on Medicare in August but some of the insurance stuff is already done for her so it will be easier for her than it was for me.
 
Yes on the BCBS. Your wife will still need to have minimum essential coverage. Medicare actually qualifies for this. The Medicare premiums are good to go for Schedule A or as SEHI on Schedules C and F. I would look into it carefully in terms of coverage and if you want a gap policy to cover what medicare doesn't.
 
I worked at a factory for many years with good health insurance. What I found out, and I am sure this will not apply to everyone, is that they force you to go onto medicare at 65, either with them as secondary or in my case not at all. And I think you will be paying the $104 whether you want it or no.
 
If you don't sign up for Medicare you don't pay maedicare premiums. No body holds a knife to your throat. We can all choose to not take Medicare and social security. The trouble with Medicare is if you wait till you are 66 or 70 or whatever age to sign up for Medicare you have to make up for the premiums you did not pay starting at 65. In other words you will be paying a lot more per month till the premiums you did not pay by not signing up at 65 are paid up. It's medicare's 'incentive' to get you to sign up right away. The only way out if I have it right is to be on a QUALIFIED medical plan through your work if you are still working for someone who provides medical coverage.
 
I signed for medicare at 65 no intentions of retiring, the SS people talked me into taking a Social Security check then, told them I need to be 66 they said take it now would have to be 114 yrs old to come out if I waited. I went for it worked till I was almost 70
no penalty you can make all you want penalty free after 65. Took my teamsters pension at 65 also. Was fun triple pay for 4 years.
When I turned 66 SS sent me a check for what I lost by going at 65.When I retired at 69? got part B for $104 and a Medicare advantage plan for $0 cost.
 
My wife is paying for her Medicare part B now since she isn't drawing SS. I get a subsidized retiree health insurance program and she needed MC first. I couldn't have retired without the Medicare for her and the subsidized health insurance from the former employer.

Medicare part B should be about $130 per month. Your self-paid health insurance SHOULD go down, but don't hold your breath. I consider insurance companies worse thieves then the government - if that's even possible.
 
(quoted from post at 13:40:39 03/26/16) There are a few more complications to consider:

Medicare part A is free and automatic at 65.

As long as you are working in a job with qualifying health insurance, you do not have to take Medicare part B. However, your employers and their health insurance program may require you to take part B and make the insurance program the secondary payer. Sometimes (my case) they decide to do that after the fact. I'd suggest checking on that now.

At 65 you may lose part of your SS based on your earned income. At 66 you don't have to take that reduction (payback).

The general rule about retirement calculations is you have to live past 85 to come out better by delaying your benefits. That's a steep hurdle for most of us based on family history.
Click to expand...


Steve, nothing the government offers is free.
 

My wife just turned 60 yesterday and I will be 60 next month. I'm planning on taking the SS at 62. It looks like she will get reduced benefits if we both take it. I'm starting to see why so many older people are living together or even get divorced even though they still love each other and still live together. Dang crazy world we live in for sure. Why do we get penalized for being married 38 years? Looks to me like some kind of prejudice, by the goobernut, to me. Why are married people penalized???
 
I was 65 last November and just so happened my employer of 44 years decided he no longer needed my services. I signed up for part A and part B. No charge for part A. My part B is $117/mo. I took the part G for the supplemental which costs $125/mo and part G for the prescriptions which cost $19/mo. The base amount for part B is $104/mo but is adjusted upward based on 2014 income. My former employer provided me with an insurance guidance person to help me through it all.
So far, no complaints. Has been great insurance. Had major surgery in January. The total bills were north of $150k. Medicare and part G took care of all of it with no expense to me. Stay away from the Medicare Advantage program. Unless you have other qualified insurance coverage you are required to take Medicare or you will pay higher premiums forever.
I am not taking social security until I reach 66.
 
If you would have went on social security at the same time you took medicare you would be paying only $104.90 a month for part B. With your G plan you do have to pay the $166.00 a year part B deductible. I also would stay away from Advantage plans but they do work for some people.
 
The wife and I went on SS at the age 63 years old and were married 44 years at the time. We did the online calculator and she would have gotten $80.00 a month. She had several jobs over the years and was a stay home mom while kid grew up. Any way we went to the SS office and worked with them and they didn't use her work record but based her SS off of mine and ended up with over $800.00 a month. We were also told that if I would die after the age of 66 years of age she could drop her SS and take all of my SS. To me we are not getting penalized.
 
Minimum Medicare part B premiums for those who were enrolled before 2016 is $104.90 per month. That was kept the same for 2016 because those in Congress thought that there would be too big a backlash if the premiums were to increase more than the cost of living increase in SS for 2016. As part of the changes made to SS the minimum premium for those enrolling in 2016 is $121.90.
 
Your Medicare part B for 2016 is based on your in come and could be as high as $389.00( the max) a month.
 
Hello rrlund,

Take yourself and your wife and go down the SS office. Take a number sit down and wait your turn. I did chuckle at some of the misconceptions including your responses. THEY will do the math for you and your wife to benefit both, no scam!

Guido.
 
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