Can you keep your employer health insurance with Medicare?
You may have to choose between Medicare and your group health plan, especially if you are getting health insurance coverage from your workplace and also eligible for Medicare. You may be punished for not applying for Medicare when you are qualified. The magnitude of punishment usually depends on the size of your company.
Let’s take a look at the rules for picking employer health benefits instead of Medicare:
- If your employer has less than 20 employees: It would help to sign up for Medicare when you are qualified to avoid punishment for late enrollment for Part B when you sign up later.
- If your employer has at least 20 workers: You may decide to delay signing up and avoid getting any late enrollment penalties in the future.
- You must wait until you’re 65 years old before signing up for Medicare if you have a disability. However, if you are receiving group health insurance coverage at an age younger than 65 years, the same rules stated above still apply.
After retiring and dropping your employer health benefits, you will be given a special enrollment period of eight months to get into Part A and Part B. The special enrollment period usually starts the month after your group or employment health plan ends. You will not face any punishment for enrolling in original Medicare during the special enrollment period if you follow all the rules stated above.