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Medicare Did You Knows

To help better understand Medicare, review our “Did You Know” lists. After reviewing our lists, you can decide for yourself the importance of Medicare in your financial life and prepare accordingly.

List #2
  1. You must have Medicare Parts A and B to enroll in a Medicare Part C (Medicare Advantage) plan

  2. If you enroll in a Medicare Part C plan, Medicare will pay a fixed monthly fee to the Medicare Part C private health insurer

  3. The cost of Medicare Part C includes the Medicare Part B premium plus any premium and fees charged by the Medicare Advantage plan

  4. You cannot combine a stand-alone prescription drug plan with a Medicare Part C plan that offers prescription drug coverage. You must either drop the stand-alone drug plan or choose a Medicare Part C plan that does not have a prescription drug component

  5. Medicare Part D (prescription drug coverage) is a separate drug plan that covers part of the prescription drug expenses not covered by Medicare Parts A & B

  6. Medicare prescription drug plans are operated by insurance and other private companies approved by Medicare

  7. There are several costs to participate in a Medicare Part D prescription drug plan, including:
    • monthly premium,
    • deductible,
    • copay,
    • coinsurance, and
    • coverage gap

  8. You can request to have your Medicare Part D premium deducted from your Social Security cash benefits

  9. If you are age 65 and receiving a Social Security check, you are automatically enrolled in Medicare and will receive a card in the mail. If you are age 65 and not receiving a Social Security check (e.g., delayed retirement), you must contact Social Security to enroll in Medicare

  10. Medicare has late enrollment monetary penalties if you do not enroll when first eligible. There are exceptions to these penalties, for example, if you are eligible for Medicare but covered by your employer or spouse's employer's health plan

  11. Single individuals whose income is more than $85,000 and couples who earn more than $170,000 pay higher Medicare Part B & D monthly premiums

To learn more about Medicare, visit the Medicare web site at www.medicare.gov.

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