Who Pays For Your Health Services First?
As explained, there is a primary payer and there is a secondary payer. Anyone on Medicare or private insurance can be your primary or secondary payer, depending on some conditions.
If you have both Medicare and private health insurance and you are above the age of 65 and you work in a private company with less than 20 employees, medicare becomes the primary payer. If there are more than 20 employees, private insurance becomes the primary payer while Medicare becomes secondary.
If you are 65 or younger but you are disabled and you work in a private company of fewer than 100 employees, Medicare becomes the primary payer. If there are more than 100 employees in the private company, private insurance becomes the primary payer while Medicare becomes secondary.
If retired from a private company, your insurance can still be covered by a plan known as retiree coverage. In this situation, Medicare becomes your primary payer while the retiree coverage becomes the secondary payer.