If you are turning 65, Medicare might be top of mind. And, when it comes time to figure out all the fine print about what to do, when to do it, and how to get it all done right...

…the recent new Medicare rule changes Congress passed have made the entire process to sign up for your Federal Medicare Part A&B benefits much more confusing and complicated today, than ever before.

The old way of going to Social Security offices is dead.

Social Security offices now limit, and severely restrict, in-person Medicare application appointment. You really can’t go there anymore. Which is sad, because the very same services you’ve worked hard your whole life, and paid your fair share of taxes to fund, are now no longer available. The help you thought you would have, and should have, is gone.

Below, I have given you a very simple and straight-forward overview of the step-by-step application process to sign up for Medicare in Buffalo, NY (or if you live anywhere else in Erie County the surrounding areas).

STEP 1: Check Eligibility.

In most cases, you are eligible for Medicare when you are 65 years of age, but younger persons can qualify due to disability, or diagnosis of End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD).

STEP 2: Properly Prepare Required Documents.

There is no cookie-cutter list here. Different situations required difference documents.

Are you submitting paperwork proactively before turning 65?
Did you miss your turning 65 deadline, but need retroactive coverage?
Did you work past 65 and keep your Employer Group Healthcare Plan?
Were there 20 or more employees where you work(ed) --- or less than 20 employees?

These are all critical questions which must be answered ahead of time if you want to be absolutely certain you avoid applying in the wrong way or at the wrong time.

STEP 3: Submit Your Medicare Application.

A few options available for you to do this. None are as easy anymore as they used to be back in the day (just ask around to anyone you know who has applied for Medicare in the last year).

OPTION A: Frustrated By Phone.
Call 1-800 number, pour yourself a cup of coffee and prepare to wait on hold for hours, just to talk to phone robots...or worse, hung up on having to call again and start all over. The average wait time is 2 hours and 32 minutes, with 25 million calls reported being disconnected withOUT speaking to a representative and no service received.

OPTION B: Challenged On Home Computer.
Difficult to do if you do not have the right security settings to access the government site, plus, the recent rule changes Congress made now require you to add new multi-factor authentication, as well as new biometric identity verification where you must scan and upload supporting documents. Most people do not own the necessary equipment, and scans are often rejected due to poor quality if not clear enough.

If too many failed attempts, you get locked out and can’t move forward, so then you have to bring all your documents with an assigned barcode…issued unique to you…to the participating post office location they assign you…and the postmaster personally verifies and confirms everything to unlock your account, so you are allowed to attempt everything a second time.

OPTION C: Stressed Sending By Snail Mail.
Fill out and file paper Medicare forms and then submit by U.S. Postal mail. Riskiest method because no one can confirmation with you if done completely and correctly. Large room for error, high risk of making mistakes, and often delays your application be approved quickly.

STEP 4: Keep Up With Ongoing Requirements.

Once you apply, you are not done. There will be additional things you will need to do. The Federal Government will NOT keep in touch with you, or let you know the status of your application, so it is up to you to check in with them.

- If you applied by phone, you should call and check status of application no later than 14 business days from day submitted.

- If you applied online, you can check status of application online with the correct credentials and the one-time “passkey” you would have been issued.

- If you applied with paper forms, you also have to call 1-800 number.

STEP 5: Appeal A Decision (If Necessary).

Sometimes, based on your situation, your Medicare benefits may not be approved, or they are delayed, or you are charged a higher monthly price than others. While this is inconvenient and irritating, there is an appeal process, which, as you can imagine, is also inconvenient and irritating to go through. Welcome to dealing with the big, dumb bureaucratic government.

STEP 6: Report Changes.

Have a change in address?
Did you lose, or do you need to replace a missing, Medicare ID card?

It can all be done by calling the 1-800 number.
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​** NOTE** The good news is, you don’t have to do anything with Medicare on your own. As the one and ONLY approved Certified Starting Medicare Specialist™️ for Erie County, my office does offer the benefit of Medicare SmartApp application services on-site where we are authorized to, not only complete and submit your Federal Medicare applications FOR YOU --- FREE, but we also have the ability to speed up the time it takes for approval, shortcutting the typical 2-3 months down to 2-3 weeks, sometimes as fast as 2-3 days. Let me take away the stress of you trying to tackle anything with Medicare on you own! We are always happy to help in any way we can, you just have to ask…

​Due to our reputation and popularity being voted #1 best Medicare planning service in the area for the last 6 years in a row, appointments are limited and fill up fast. To see if you qualify to use the free, nationally-recognized and 5-star rated, Medicare SmartStart Program™️ I manage, call my local office in Clarence right now at (716) 833-0252. (Really the only people I can't help and the ones who never call).