Janell Sluga Medicare & Individual Health Insurance Account Executive View Bio

 Question: I’m getting ready to sign up for Medicare, but I don’t want to collect Social Security yet. How will I pay for the Medicare Part B premium?

Answer:

Social Security and Medicare have been around for a long time, and for many of those years, individuals filed for both benefits at the same time. Now, many individuals wait to collect their Social Security Benefits until after they sign up for Medicare Part A and B.

To understand this trend, I’ll lay out the timing: while you may start collecting Social Security as early as age 62, individuals born after 1960 don’t reach “full retirement age” (FRA) until their 67th birthday. So many newly eligible individuals opt to wait until FRA to collect Social Security. However, eligibility for Medicare insurance for most individuals starts when they turn 65. So, along the way to FRA, they’ll still need to make a Medicare insurance enrollment decision at age 65.

So, to address your situation, let’s start by contrasting it with individuals who DO collect Social Security before they become eligible for Medicare insurance: first of all, they’ll be automatically enrolled into Medicare Parts A & B, starting the month in which they turn 65. Second, before they even turn 65, they will be mailed a Medicare ID card noting their Medicare ID number and their Part A & B start date. Third, their Medicare Part B premium of $185/ month is automatically deducted from their Social Security Benefit.

You’ll notice that all of this happens automatically, so generally the process to sign up for Medicare insurance isn’t as complex if you are already collecting Social Security.

So back to your situation, if you are not collecting Social Security, but you are eligible for Medicare insurance, you will NOT be automatically enrolled in Medicare Part A or B, so you’ll need to take certain steps to actively enroll in the parts of Medicare insurance that best fit your needs. Once you add Part B, you will need to pay a premium to keep it active, and again it will NOT be an automatic deduction. You pay your Part B Premium using a quarterly bill that you’ll receive, known as the CMS-500.

The normal quarterly bill amount will be $555 – the normal $185 Part B Premium, times 3 months. Sometimes the bill that individuals receive is higher than $555. This can be for three reasons: first, your quarterly bill is determined by when your birthday month falls, so you may be billed for four months instead of three ($185 X 4= $740). This would only happen on your first bill, to get you on the normal quarterly billing schedule.

The second reason you might be billed more would be that your income is high according to the IRS. This higher Medicare Part B premium is called an IRMAA (Income Related Monthly Adjustment Amount) and is based on your income on your tax returns two years before adding Medicare – so the 2025 IRMAA is based on your 2023 tax returns. With an IRMAA, your Medicare Part B premium could be between $259 and $628.90 per month. And, because you’d have a higher monthly premium, your quarterly bill will be higher to reflect this. Keep in mind, if you feel your income has reduced enough that you’d no longer owe an IRMAA or it should be reduced, you can request an adjustment of your IRMAA from your local Social Security Administration office. This can be based on more recent tax returns or a Life Changing Event, i.e. retirement, death of a spouse, remarriage, etc.

The third reason your bill might be high is that you enrolled in Medicare Part B late, after you first became eligible, and you have a Late Enrollment Penalty (LEP). An LEP is based on the number of months you were late with your enrollment. It increases your monthly Part B premium by 10% for each full, consecutive 12-month period you were late to your enrollment.

Returning to how to pay your Part B Premium, you can always send a check each quarter. However, you can use the info provided with your Part B premium bill to set up an automatic payment, like an Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) or auto-pay with a credit card. You can also use your secure MyMedicare.gov account to pay this bill via credit card or debit card.

Should you decide to start collecting Social Security, your Part B premium WILL automatically begin to get deducted from your monthly Benefit. At that point, you’ll stop getting a bill. Still, note that the premium will be taken out of your Social Security BEFORE it is deposited into your account.

I’ll stress that YOU SHOULD NOT PAY YOUR PART B PREMIUM BILL LATE. The amount is certainly high, but it covers a three-month period, so it is less frequent than normal monthly bills. Remember that you can find lots of information about this bill and other Medicare topics on the www.Medicare.gov website.

At Lawley Medicare Solutions, our Medicare and Individual Health Consultants are dedicated to helping you make the most informed decisions about your healthcare needs. We offer personalized service and expert advice tailored to your unique situation. Contact us today by phone or email to schedule a consultation and ensure you’re getting the best coverage for your needs.

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Our licensed Medicare & Individual Health Insurance team can help clients understand the details of Medicare insurance plans, assist with choosing the right benefits and coverage, and provide guidance when life events that affect health coverage occur. For questions, concerns, or to reach Lawley Medicare Solutions, call 716.849.8223.