Making a mistake with your Medicare enrollment can have lifelong consequences. There are several severe penalties to make sure you avoid when dealing with Medicare. Below we cover the most important ones and how to avoid them.
Many of the healthier people we speak with may not be taking any medications at all and therefore, don’t want to pay for a Prescription Drug plan that they do not plan on using. However, if you do not enroll in a Part D drug plan and no not have any other *creditable* drug coverage, you will have a penalty added onto your drug plan once you do sign up for one. The penalty works out to roughly $3/mo for every 12-month period you don’t have a drug plan. So for example, if you wait until age 70 to get a drug plan….that is 5 years x $3/mo = $15/mo added on to your drug plan premium each month indefinitely.
How to avoid? If you don’t have other drug coverage, just get an inexpensive Part D Drug plan so that you avoid the penalty.
You can also eliminate an existing Part D penalty by qualifying for Medicare’s Low Income Subsidy program.
Helpful Resource: Calculate your penalty using our Part D Penalty Calculator.
Medicare Doesn’t Have To Be So Hard…
Schedule your FREE appointment to have our team answer your questions and make Medicare easy.
If you do not have *creditable coverage* and are eligible to sign up for Medicare Part B but miss your enrollment window, you will be charged a 10% penalty on top of your Part B cost which will stay with you forever. That comes out to roughly $17 extra per month for each 12-month period you don’t sign up for Medicare Part B when you should have. Yikes!
How to avoid? Simple, sign up for your Part B during the 3 month window before your 65th birthday or as soon as you lose coverage through an employer plan.
Helpful Resource: Calculate your penalty using our Part B Penalty Calculator.
If your income is above certain thresholds, the government will add on a “surcharge” to your monthly Part B and Part D premiums. In 2024, those limits are $103,000/yr as an individual and $206,000/yr filing jointly. Note: These income limits are based on your 2022 adjusted gross income. For folks in this situation, Part B can cost up to $594.00/mo and Part D can cost an extra $81.00/mo above your plan premium.
How to avoid? Our team can file an IRMAA appeal form for you to see if you qualify to get out of this surcharge. We see roughly half of appeals get approved, especially if your income will be going down as you enter retirement or if your income was unusually high due to a windfall payment of some sort (sale of property, inheritance, lump sum pension, etc).
As long as you maintain creditable coverage from your employer group health plan, you will not have a penalty if you delay your Medicare benefits to continue working.
When it comes to Medicare, the penalties are life-long which means that they will really add up over the course of your lifetime. Its best to simply avoid them and keep that money in your pocket.
“This was the best experience I’ve ever had dealing with Medicare information.” – Darrell P.
For 40 years, our family has been helping seniors understand their Medicare benefits and find the best plan for their unique situation – the best part? Our service is always 100% free to you!
Wouldn’t this be
Easier on video?
Reading about Medicare can be confusing…Thats why we took all the important parts and put them into an easy, free video.
Get Our FREE Medicare & Social Security Cheat Sheet
Download this FREE printable cheat sheet to get the information you need in one place. You’ll never worry about forgetting a number, date, or deadline again. UPDATED FOR 2024!
Popular Articles
Learn how Medicare works, when and how to sign up, and a breakdown of all the coverage options in this easy guide.
There are several severe penalties to make sure you avoid when dealing with Medicare. If you get them, they can stay with you for life.
The costs for Medicare change each year. In this article we break down the costs for Medicare premiums and co-pays.
© 2023 The Medicare Family. All Rights Reserved.
Owned by: ESG Insurance LLC. This website is not connected with the federal government or the federal Medicare program. The purpose of this website is the solicitation of insurance. We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 31 organizations which offer 3,740 products. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800 MEDICARE or your local State Health Insurance Program to get information on all of your options.
© 2024 The Medicare Family. All Rights Reserved.
Owned by: ESG Insurance LLC. This website is not connected with the federal government or the federal Medicare program. The purpose of this website is the solicitation of insurance. We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 31 organizations which offer 3,740 products. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800 MEDICARE or your local State Health Insurance Program to get information on all of your options.
© 2024 The Medicare Family. All Rights Reserved.
Owned by: ESG Insurance LLC. This website is not connected with the federal government or the federal Medicare program. The purpose of this website is the solicitation of insurance. We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 31 organizations which offer 3,740 products. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800 MEDICARE or your local State Health Insurance Program to get information on all of your options.
By entering your email address, you agree to receive emails from The Medicare Family. We respect your privacy and you can unsubscribe anytime.