Enrolling in Medicare Programs

If the person isn't collecting Social Security or other federal pension retirement, disability, or dependents' or survivors' benefits, she has to apply for Medicare Part A at a local Social Security office. She should file her application as early as three months before she turns 65, to ensure that the paperwork is completed by her 65th birthday. If she's eligible for Social Security or other federal pension benefits but hasn't yet started collecting them, she will receive free Part A coverage, with no monthly premium.

If she is 65 and a citizen or legal resident but doesn't qualify for Social Security or other federal pension benefits, she can still apply for Medicare Part A. However, she will have to pay a monthly premium for it; the amount is determined by how many Social Security work credits she has accumulated. If she applies for Medicare Part A within six months after she turns 65, her coverage will date back to her 65th birthday. If she applies more than six months after her birthday, her coverage will date back only to six months before the date she applied.

The person may be one of the many people under age 65 enrolled in a managed care health plan. The company that runs that plan may also have a Medicare Part C Medicare Advantage managed care plan that she could switch to when she turns 65. That would let her continue with all the same doctors and other providers from whom she receives care now. If she's happy with her managed care plan, and the same company offers a Part C Medicare Advantage version, she can simply notify the plan of her intention to switch to this Medicare Part C version. If she does so and isn't already receiving Social Security or other federal pension benefits, the managed care plan will help her enroll in Medicare Part A and Part B.

If she's turning 65 but isn't yet collecting any Social Security or other federal pension benefit, she needs to sign up for Medicare Part B at a local Social Security office. (She can do it at the same time she files for Social Security benefits at age 65, if she's doing that, too.) In the months immediately before and after her 65th birthday, she has what's called an initial enrollment period. This allows her to sign up for Medicare Part B as early as three months before the month she turns 65, and anytime within three months after the end of the month she turns 65. If she doesn't sign up for Part B by the end of this initial enrollment period, she has to wait until the general enrollment period of January 1 through March 31 each year. The timing of her enrollment in Part B determines when her coverage begins and can affect how much it costs:

* If she signs up for Medicare Part B within the three months before the month in which she turns 65, her coverage will begin on her 65th birthday.

* If she signs up within three months after the month she turns 65, her coverage will be delayed one to three months; there's no retroactive Part B coverage back to her 65th birthday.

* If she signs up for Part B in the general enrollment period January through March, after her initial enrollment period is over, her coverage won't begin until July 1 of that year. Also, her monthly premiums for Part B coverage will be higher -- 10 percent higher for each year she delayed enrolling.

Anyone eligible for Medicare is guaranteed the right to enroll in any Medicare Plan D prescription drug plan sold in the state where she lives during an initial enrollment period. This period begins three months before the month she turns 65, and continues until three months after the month she turns 65. If she doesn't sign up for a Part D plan by the end of this period, she has to wait until the Plan D yearly general enrollment period of November 15 through December 31. There's a financial penalty if she doesn't enroll in a plan during her initial enrollment period but later decides to join a plan. For each month she delays enrolling after the close of her initial enrollment period, she must pay a 1 percent penalty on the premium price of any plan she eventually joins. http://www.caring.com/articles/medicare-enrollment