Problem:

Natasha is turning 65 in a few months and wants to enroll in Medicare because she has no other insurance. She has never worked in the U.S. and is worried about the costs. She knows that people who have fewer than 10 years of work history in the U.S. may owe a premium for Part A. Her husband Eric is 58 and has worked in the U.S. for over 25 years.

Question:

Is Natasha eligible to enroll in Medicare when she turns 65? Will she qualify for premium-free Part A?

Problem:

Steven turned 65 three years ago and decided to not enroll in Medicare Part B during his Initial Enrollment Period (IEP) because he was covered by his employer’s health insurance. He is 68 now and is retiring from his job at the end of the month. As a result, he is losing his coverage through his employer and wants to enroll in Part B. He had read that enrolling late in Part B will result in coverage gaps and penalties.

Question:

Can Steven enroll in Part B? Will he have to pay a late enrollment penalty (LEP) and face gaps in coverage?

Problem:

Melanie has Original Medicare. She broke her hip in a biking accident and spent three days as a hospital inpatient before being admitted to a skilled nursing facility (SNF). Melanie spent 100 days in the SNF, at which point she was discharged because she ran out of Medicare-covered days in her benefit period.

Three weeks later, she broke her leg in another accident and was admitted as a hospital inpatient for five days. After five days, her doctor told her that she should be transferred to a SNF to receive rehabilitation care.

Question:

Will Medicare cover Melanie’s SNF stay for the second accident after she is discharged from the hospital?

Problem:

Abby is 92 years old and has Original Medicare. She needed help paying for her Medicare Part B and applied for a Medicare Savings Program (MSP). A few months later, she received a letter saying she qualified for the Qualified Individual (QI) program, which pays the Part B monthly premium. Although Abby thought she had the benefit, Social Security continued to deduct the Part B premium from her monthly check over the course of the following year.

Question:

What should Abby do to fix her MSP?