I’ve been talking a lot lately about planning and being prepared.

One area of life & health insurance that requires preparation is COBRA. So I do want to touch a little bit more on COBRA and Medicare.

PLANNING, PLANNING, PLANNING.

Moving on to Medicare? If you’re going to turn 65, at least three months out you need to prepare!

Do not wait till the month before you’re going to be 65. Or even worse, the month that you’re turning 65.

And I had this happen this week with a client who was turning 65 this month. Technically, Medicare can start on the first of a month when you turn 65 – people don’t know that, and it helps to prepare.

Some steps to be prepared:

• You want to sign up and enroll in Social Security, maybe not the benefits, even if you’re not going to take your benefits, but you need to sign up your Medicare A and B. So that at least you get coverage that starts on the first of the month that you’re turning 65. If you don’t do that, then it can delay coverage.
• If you’re on a Marketplace plan, and you’re receiving a subsidy, you are no longer eligible for a subsidy once you’re eligible for Medicare. I want to keep people out of trouble with the IRS. Know this, and prepare for it!
• Contact me three months out. I have an associate who strictly handles all my Medicare clients.
• Then, the other piece to plan is the dental and vision.
  • Medicare doesn’t cover dental and vision, generally, there are some plans advantages to plans where you could get some basic benefits.
  • We need to evaluate what you have determined if you need dental and vision. And then make sure you’re still covered.
  • Once we switch you from your existing health insurance to a Medicare-type plan; whether it’s a Medicare Advantage Plan, traditional Medicare, or Original Medicare, we need to evaluate what is best for you. Where are your medications covered? Where are your doctors in-network, all those things come into play.

With Cobra, what a lot of people do not realize is you can choose to keep dental and vision insurance separate from medical insurance. Some people think it’s all or nothing. And sometimes it is, I’ve seen that occasionally, but generally speaking, you can choose to keep the dental and vision separate. This means that even if we go a different route with your medical coverage, you can still keep the dental and vision coverage you had. That’s almost always your best option.

PLANNING IS KEY! Plan three months out so that we can sort out your current coverage versus your new Medicare medical plan and your dental & vision coverage!

If you need help planning, or have questions please feel free to reach out to me.