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When Should I Sign Up For Medicare If I Delayed Coverage At 65 Living In WNY?

By Andrew L Hibbard 
@WNYMrMedicare

Originally Posted: 10 JULY 2023
Updated & Revised:

Last week, I answered a common question around “How Will Delaying Medicare At 65 Affect My Premium Later?” which is a smart question many don’t think to ask.

Baby Boomers born in 1958 or later, are learning their arbitrary “full retirement age” assigned by Social Security Office continues to be kicked further and further into the future and are now required to make complex and complicated decisions.

A notable and noticeable shift in Baby Boomers working past 65 is considered your new norm, which brings about new concerns and considerations if you are aware of the costly late enrollment penalties you will likely be assessed.

If you delayed Medicare at 65 the incredibly impactful question you need to be asking is this…

When Should I Sign Up For Medicare If I Delayed Coverage At 65?

Unlike your gracious 7-month Medicare enrollment timeline pre-65, your post-65 enrollment period is a compressed and consolidated window of just 60-days prior to the date you need your Medicare benefits to begin.

Let me give you an example…

Susan wants to work until the end of the calendar year and finally retire. She will be 67.

Her husband Steve is already retired, does NOT have Medicare and is insured under her health plan from her Employer as a dependent spouse.

They both need Medicare for January 1st.

Both, Susan, and Steve, will need to fill out and file their Medicare application forms during the two (2) month period before needing Medicare to start --- which would be the months of November and December, since they need Medicare to begin January 1st.

Once their Medicare application forms and filed, they will be assessed a late enrollment penalty based on the number of months which have passed from when they turned 65 (and were first eligible for Medicare) and the first day they will activate their coverage on January 1st.

They will be given the chance to disagree with this late enrollment penalty assessment and file supporting documentation to prove they had “credible coverage” from active employment, at an employer with 20 or more employees.

Often, the option to submit supporting documents is close to, or after, when you request your Medicare to become effective so you will be retroactively refunded paying the late enrollment penalty when you really shouldn’t have paid it in the first place.

Procrastination is ill advised.

Proactive planning can lessen and lower the potential for problems and give you the confidence you will start Medicare smartly.

Now, the Federal Government has found new ways to be less effective and take longer to get their job done, so you must be prompt and purposeful in the coordination of your coverage to ensure no lapse, no gaps, and certainly avoiding at all costs having to pay for costly COBRA coverage to bridge the gap because things weren’t done right on time.

The loss of your Employer Group Health Plan (EGHP) along with signing up and starting your Medicare coverage will take an extensive and exhaustive effort to have your old coverage end and your new coverage begin as you wish, want and expect.

In many cases, mistakes or mishaps made with Medicare cannot be undone.

It is very difficult to get a “do over” with the government.

So, if you delayed Medicare at 65, and you now need to sign up later in life, it is imperative and important you either have the knowledge and know-how to complete these requirements or you rely on someone or somewhere who can do-it-for-you and make sure your move to Medicare is smooth and seamless.

Ok, there’s a lot to deal with, right? I get it.

And as an active adult in WNY, who’s always on the run, you need a smart solution to cut through all the clutter. 

If you want some light shed on your situation, your hand held the whole way, and making your move to Medicare simpler, easier, seemingly stress-free and almost effortless, I can do just that. Here's how...

NEARING AGE 65 AND AREN'T SURE WHERE TO START?

**If you are TURNING 65 IN 6-12 MONTHS, my #1 Amazon best-selling guidebook, "Starting Medicare Smartly" will give you a great overview of everything you need to know, before you need to know it. Instead of buying on Amazon for $12.99, click HERE now and let me send you a completely free, complimentary copy, all at my expense.

**If you are TURNING 65 IN 4-6 MONTHS, you should be getting ready to enroll and your paperwork prepared to either sign up at 65, or suspend --- you can't do nothing. If you don't have the time or desire to deal with doing any of the dirty work with Medicare yourself, OR, you feel frustrated, confused and kind of clueless about figuring out the fine print with Medicare, you can rely on my free Medicare SmartStart Program and let me take away all your stress of trying to tackle anything on your own. It's how I help people just like you. Weekly availability is limited to the first 10 folks, and maximum 40 per month. Don't delay. Click HERE nowto learn more about my nationally recognized program, and how you can put it to work for you --- for free.

**If you are TURNING 65 IN 1-4 MONTHS, you are cutting it close to your Medicare late penalty period. If you have NOT yet filled out and filed your Medicare forms, you are behind and against the clock. It is URGENT we get together as soon as possible so I can do all I can to help you avoid paying a costly late penalty for life --- before it's too late! Click HERE now to immediately schedule an emergency Medicare SmartStart Strategy Session with me...if there are still any available.


HAVE MORE MEDICARE QUESTIONS?

Read the most common questions folks in WNY ask when they aren’t sure how to get started with Medicare. Click HERE to see the complete Medicare SmartStart Answers article archive.


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Andrew L Hibbard is a prominent name when mentioning Medicare in WNY, but one you may have never heard of. Working behind-the-scenes, he is a best-selling author, expert advisor and successful agency owner. Focused on educating first, Andrew prides himself on being considered “the only advocate in WNY fighting for better and more reliable Medicare resources, free from insurance company conflict of interests.”

To take away the stress of trying to tackle Medicare alone and feeling forced to figure it all out by yourself --- Andrew created the WNY Medicare SmartStart Program; a free, step-by-step plan, that holds you by the hand to sign up and start Medicare smartly. (More than 850+ people have gone through the program and call it “the lazy way to get Medicare done for you without costing you a dime”).

**SPECIAL FREE GIFT** If you want to see how hundreds of WNY'ers each year are doing things different with Medicare, and getting it all done in record time, you can request a special "Medicare SmartStarter Info Kit” at no-cost to you, Andrew will give it to you as his free gift. It will prove, without a doubt, why his Medicare SmartStart Program is widely considered the most popular and preferred way to sign up and get started with Medicare in WNY, Guaranteed! Simply click HERE right now and everything will be rushed to you right away. It's that easy!

You Can Feel Confident Knowing What To Do With Medicare.

I Can Take Away The Stress Of Trying To Tackle It On Your Own.

Figuring out all the fine print with Medicare doesn't need to feel stressful. You don't have to spend your scarce free time at home, alone, in isolation, relying on your own assumptions and hit-or-miss guesses, attempting to do-it-yourself.

Confidently knowing exactly what to do (and when) with Medicare is the key to avoiding future fines and fees and only my Medicare SmartStart Program will show you how.

If you don't have the time or the desire to deal with Medicare directly, and want a BETTER, SMARTER, time-saving solution to short-cut hours of your own trial and error so you know --- without question --- you aren't messing anything up making a mistake...

Let me put my proven Medicare SmartStart Program to work for you. 

Click the link below to take the next step and schedule a complimentary Medicare SmartStart Strategy Session with me --- it's that easy!

You Can Feel Confident Knowing What To Do With Medicare.

I Can Take Away The Stress Of Trying To Tackle It On Your Own.

Figuring out all the fine print with Medicare doesn't need to feel stressful. You don't have to spend your scarce free time at home, alone, in isolation, relying on your own assumptions and hit-or-miss guesses, attempting to do-it-yourself.

Confidently knowing exactly what to do (and when) with Medicare is the key to avoiding future fines and fees and only my Medicare SmartStart Program will show you how.

If you don't have the time or the desire to deal with Medicare directly, and want a BETTER, SMARTER, time-saving solution to short-cut hours of your own trial and error so you know --- without question --- you aren't messing anything up making a mistake...

Let me put my proven Medicare SmartStart Program to work for you. 

Click the link below to take the next step and schedule a complimentary Medicare SmartStart Strategy Session with me --- it's that easy!

Get Started For FREE!

medicare help sign up for Medicare Part B Erie county
Who Is Andrew Hibbard?
Since 2015, Andrew has helped over 850+ Western New Yorkers through his nationally recognized Medicare SmartStart Program, taking away all the stress from folks trying to tackle Medicare on their own. His impressive record of success has been gotten Andrew featured in Forever Young Magazine and the BEE Group Newspapers, exclusive interviews on WECK Radio's Senior Matter's Program, and author an #1 Amazon best-selling guidebook on the subject, "Starting Medicare Smartly," revealing how the rules specifically and significantly differ for NY residents versus other states.
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