Medicare Part A and Part B Enrollment Periods

You can only sign up for Part B (and/or Part A if you have to buy it) during these enrollment periods.

Initial Enrollment Period

You can first sign up for Part A and/or Part B during the 7-month period that begins 3 months before the month you turn 65, includes the month you turn 65, and ends 3 months after the month you turn 65.

If you sign up for Part A and/or Part B during the first 3 months of your Initial Enrollment Period, in most cases, your coverage begins the first day of your birthday month. However, if your birthday is on the first day of the month, your coverage starts the first day of the prior month.

If you sign up and are paying for Part A and/or Part B the month you turn 65 or during the last 3 months of your Initial Enrollment Period, the start date for your Part B coverage will be delayed (in 2022).

Beginning January 1, 2023, if you sign up the month you turn 65 or during the last 3 months of your Initial Enrollment Period, your coverage starts the first day of the month after you sign up.

Special Enrollment Period

After your Initial Enrollment Period is over, you may have a chance to sign up for Medicare during a Special Enrollment Period. For example, if you didn’t sign up for Part B (or Part A if you have to buy it) when you were first eligible because you have group health plan coverage based on current employment (your own, a spouse’s, or a family member’s if you have a disability), you can sign up for Part A and/or Part B:

• Anytime you’re still covered by the group health plan.
• During the 8-month period that begins the month after the employment ends or the coverage ends, whichever happens first.

Usually, you won’t have to pay a late enrollment penalty if you sign up during a Special Enrollment Period. This period doesn’t apply if you’re eligible for Medicare based on End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD), or you’re still in your Initial Enrollment Period.

COBRA (Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act) coverage, retiree health plans, VA coverage, and individual health insurance coverage (like coverage through the Health Insurance Marketplace) aren’t considered coverage based on current employment.

There are other circumstances where you may be able to sign up for Medicare during a Special Enrollment Period. Beginning January 1, 2023, you may be eligible for a Special Enrollment Period if you miss an enrollment period because of certain exceptional circumstances, like being impacted by a natural disaster or an emergency, incarceration, or losing Medicaid coverage.

General Enrollment Period

If you have to pay for Part A but don’t sign up for it or don’t sign up for Part B (for which you must pay premiums) during your Initial Enrollment Period, and you don’t qualify for a Special Enrollment Period, you can sign up during the General Enrollment Period from January 1 to March 31 each year. You may have to pay a higher Part A and/or Part B premium for late enrollment.

Beginning January 1, 2023, when you sign up during this General Enrollment period, your coverage starts the first day of the month after you sign up.

_{SOURCE: United Benefit Advisors (UBA) and Fisher Phillips, Atlanta}