If you are already retired AND collecting Social Security, congratulations! A few months ahead of your birth month you will be AUTOMATICALLY enrolled in Medicare A and B. Among the piles of literature you receive from health insurance companies, you will be sent a card in the mail showing your Medicare ID# and effective dates (the month you turn 65). If you plan on using Medicare as your health insurance moving forward you do not need to take any further action.
When considering Social Security versus Medicare, it’s important to recognize that these are two separate benefit programs from the federal government. Social Security provides financial support, whereas Medicare is health insurance coverage. These two safety net programs work together to support people with disabilities to remain as healthy as possible. As mentioned, for someone looking to gain health insurance coverage via Medicare because of a disability, they must first apply for disability benefits from Social Security.
You can't receive both your full benefit and your husband's survivor benefit at the same time. If your survivor benefit is higher than your own benefit, you can switch to the survivor benefit. However, the Social Security Administration will give you the higher of the two amounts, but not both.
