Failing to sign up for Medicare at 65 may, and can often, result in paying a permanent lifetime penalty which increases the monthly price you will pay for Medicare, forever into the future, until the day you die.

Many people turning age 65 are unaware, or aren’t told, there are actually 2 separate late penalties you can be forced to pay:

(1) The first penalty you would pay is on your Part B (outpatient medical benefit) which will charge you an additional 10% for every full 12-month period you delayed signing up. So, if you wait 2 years to enroll, you could pay a 20% higher monthly price for Medicare indefinitely. If you wait 3 years past 65 to sign up, you could pay 30% higher, etc., etc.

(2) The second penalty you would pay is on your Part D (prescription drug benefit) which is calculated using a unique formula created by the Centers For Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). This formula changes every year, but essentially it works out as “Number Of Uncovered Months” X “1%” X “National Base Amount Set By CMS.” As the national base amount is changed annually, your Part D penalty paid will be adjusted requiring you pay more and more, year after year.

Both of these are bad. You don’t want this to be you, right?

So, to avoid being assessed either a Part B or Part B penalty, it is important IMPERATIVE you understand the critical new rule changes Congress recently passed which affect anyone “aging into Medicare” and signing up for their Federal benefits the first time.

Almost all potential late penalties can be absolutely avoided with proper and proactive Medicare planning, but the problem is, the Government has made many confusing and complicated rule changes, while at the same time, is not providing the public with any reliable resources or good guidance.

If you do not know, Social Security offices across the country now restrict, and severely limit, in-person Medicare application appointments. You are left to fend for yourself and figure out all the fine print on your own.

And to make matters worse, even the instructions offered online are old, outdated, and often incomplete or inaccurate regarding the new process and procedures you must follow.

More and more of those nearing age 65 are continuing to make many common (and costly) mistakes, ACCIDENTALLY, without even knowing. Remember, you don’t get a “re-do” with the government.

There is much more on your “to-do” list than you may realize, and the new application process takes more time than you may think, so again, I can NOT stress how IMPERATIVE it is you are proactive with your Medicare planning.

Without taking a proactive role, your ability to prevent paying potential permanent late penalty, flies like a bird out the window.

Don't procrastinate and put this off. I don’t want you to regret dragging your feet, waiting to the last minute, putting yourself in danger and at risk of getting in serious trouble that’s difficult to get out it.
​
​** 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).