Tyler Haskell, Medicare Insurance Broker

Answer: Step 1: Sign up for Medicare A and B. Best way to do this is on your social security portal at ssa.gov or at your local social security office. If you are already taking social security benefits, they will automatically sign you up for medicare A and B.

Step 2: Figure out if you want to stay on original medicare and buy a medicare supplement or go onto an advantage plan. I highly recommend a local recommended broker to help you with this.

Step 3: Enroll in either a supplement/and a part D drug plan or a medicare advantage plan.

These are 3 very basic steps. There are so many variables and each persons' situation is different. That is why I recommend finding someone you can trust to help guide you through the process.

Answer: There can be disadvantages if they are steering you toward certain plans because they get paid more. There can also be huge advantages to working with good brokers that have your best interest at heart. Just make sure you work with a broker that will teach you about all the options (advantage and supplements).

Answer: Yes, you will automatically be enrolled in part A and B of medicare if you are are already getting social security prior to turning 65. You will probably see your medicare card come in the mail about 3 months prior to your birth month.

Answer: "Better" depends on you, your situation, and whether or not you have a crystal ball. Medigap policies in my opinion are better because you can plan your out of pocket expenses easier and you can go anywhere in the county medicare is accepted. The down side is you can have high premiums.

Medicare advantage plans have some really nice benefits, but you could have higher out of pocket expenses and you have to deal with certain networks of doctors and facilities.

Only you can decide which "better" for your unique situation.

Answer: No, not necessarily. There are some Chronic Medicare Advantage plans available in some areas that would give you an SEP, but you wouldn't have an SEP into a medicare supplement based off health.

Answer: Make sure the agent is going over Medicare advantage plans and Medicare supplement plans. Have them go over the pros and cons of each (hint: medicare supplements don't have many cons other than the premium). If you do like the Medicare supplement route, have them give you a few different quotes from different companies and have them explain the difference and why each company is priced accordingly. Medicare is very complicated if they are teaching you about all the different options so you can understand, you should be in good hands. If you feel like you are being sold something, that's probably a bad sign. Think of the agent like a consultant, they should be showing you all the options and letting you choose which one you like best.

Answer: Try to find a local Medicare broker that specializes in helping people navigate the the whole process. Make sure they explain ALL your options, including medicare supplements and advantage plans. Try to find someone that has been doing it for awhile and is not a newbie that won't be there next year. Find a professional that you can trust.

Answer: Yes, medicare supplements are secondary insurance to Medicare. They piggyback off of original Medicare. Original Medicare is your primary insurance and the supplement is your secondary insurance. Original Medicare runs the show, what they say goes. If they pay for it, the secondary has to pay it's part. If original medicare doesn't pay, the supplement will not pay either in most situations.

Answer: Yes you can! You can use an HSA to pay for Medicare part B premiums, Medicare Advantage premiums (if you have any), Medicare part D premiums, as well as any out of pocket co-pays, deductibles, or co-insurance that you might have. You can also use it for Dental, Vision, Hearing expenses. The one thing you CAN'T use an HSA for is Medicare Supplement premiums.

Answer: For medicare supplement plans: Technically, you can change your medicare supplement plan any time as long as you are healthy enough to switch plans or companies. Also, depending on your state, you might be able to switch each year around your birthday. Just google your state and medicare birthday rule and you should find plenty of information on that.

For Medicare advantage plans: There are usually 2 times per year when you can change your medicare advantage plan. During the Annual enrollment period (October 15-December 7th) and during the Open enrollment period (January 1st-March 31st. Medicare advantage plans do not require any health guidelines to switch.

Answer: You should be skeptical if anybody is “pushing” Medicare advantage plans. If you feel you’re being pushed into anything, find a different broker that will teach you about the differences of both advantage plans and medigap plans and then you can make your decision.

Answer: Delaying social security to age 70 does not effect your Medicare enrollment. You would enroll in Medicare as usual and Medicare will bill you quarterly for your part B premium (Part A for most people is free). When you turn on your social security in the future, medicare will deduct the part B premium directly from your social security benefit monthly.

Answer: Medicare advantage plans can sometimes have high co-pays and high out of pocket maximums. You also are going to have some sort of network of doctors and hospitals to deal with. Although those things are pretty typical with most health insurance plans, some people prefer to stay on traditional medicare and buy a supplement to cover most of the out of pocket costs and not have to deal with a network.

Answer: Medicare (the government) pays the company a set amount of money for each person that is on the medicare advantage plan. It is up to the company then to pay the claims of the insured, based on the individual policy.

Answer: Medicare advantage plans have a lot of nice extra benefits but in my opinion, where seniors fall victim, is when they focus too much on their plans extra benefits instead of looking at the actual medical benefits and their out of pocket exposure. You want to make sure your plans medical benefits are in line with with your needs and the the extra benefits are what they are.

Answer: Yes, you will need to make sure your coverage works in the state you moved to. Medicare advantage plans and prescription drug plans are generally state specific, so you might need to change them to a plan that works in your new area.

Answer: If you want a medicare supplement plan and you are outside your open enrollment time, you could be denied a plan. Your Medicare supplement open enrollment will normally be 6 months from when your part B goes into effect. For example, if you turn 65 in January and your medicare part A and B start January 1st, you would have 6 months from Jan 1st to pick any medicare supplement plan available to you in your area without any kind of medicare underwriting.

Answer: Believe it or not, but I still run into far too many people not doing anything other than Medicare A and B when they first turn 65. That can be a costly mistake. If you don't do a Part D plan when you first become eligible, when you get one later, you will be penalized for all the time that you didn't have one. The penalty can be a life time penalty (ouch).

Also, if you are just on original medicare A and B, you are exposed to some very hefty out of pocket deductibles and you could be on the hook for 20% of unlimited health costs.

Even if you can't afford a medicare supplement, most people have access to medicare advantage plans for $0 extra cost that at least get you part D coverage and limit your risk of out of pocket expenses.

Answer: "Original" Medicare in my opinion can be better than an advantage plan if you buy a medicare supplement to go with your original medicare to cover up the deductibles and co-insurance that original medicare has. The word "better" can mean something different for different people but here are a few reasons I think it would be "better" than an advantage plan:

-less out of pocket if you buy a medigap policy like Plan N or G to go with it.

-Go anywhere in the country medicare is accepted

-more lenient when it comes to authorizations and pre approvals.

Answer: Most of the time, yes. There are some states that have whats called the "birthday rule" and allow you to change supplements on a guaranteed basis. Just google your state and medicare birthday rule and see if your state is one of them. If not, more than likely you will have to pass the company's underwriting guidelines to switch plans.

Answer: Unfortunately, that is one of the down sides of an HMO plan. You must see providers that are in-network. You would have to pay the whole thing out of pocket. You could explain to the cardiologist's office your situation, and they might be able to give you a cash price discount. It's worth asking if you really want to see that specific one.

Answer: If you travel a lot, staying on Original medicare and getting a medicare supplement will give you the most flexibility as original medicare is accepted almost everywhere nationwide. This option will limit you on the international side to about $50k for emergencies only, so you would probably want to pick up some international supplemental coverage as well.

Answer: IRMAA is automatically re-calculated every year and is always based off your income 2 years prior. For example, in this year 2025, if you have an IRMAA surcharge it is because your income was over the limits in 2023. If you have IRMAA this year because your income in 2023 was too high but your income in 2024 was under the limit, IRMAA should automatically be taken off for year 2026. If you have a life qualifying event like retirement and you know your income will not be over the limits for the current year, you can appeal the surcharge by filing form SSA-44. Just google SSA-44 and it will pull up.