Applying for Medicare, OR Does Medi CARE? A Public Service Announcement From One Who Has Trod That Road

Well...to answer that (⬆) question, I'm SURE that there are some... nay, MANy Medicare employees who do CARE. Unfortunately, that doesn't mean that (1) they know what they're doing or (2) you will ever run into one of them.

So I thought I'd throw out a Public Service Announcement blog entry just in case there's anyone Out There who is soon turning 65 so that s/t/he/y can at least avoid some of the potholes that I hit on this road.

First and foremost, your window to apply for Medicare starts three months before your birthday. Actually a little bit more than that. If your birthday is not on the first of the month, you can apply starting on the first of the month three months before your birthday. And if your birthday is on the first of the month, you can apply four months before your birthday. (If your birthday is June 1, your enrollment window opens on February 1.) You also have a three month window after your birthday, but I would strongly suggest that you not go there, as nothing in this application process is particularly simple...and nothing happens at any speed greater than glacial.

Okay?

Okay. You'e already ahead of me, since I didn't know this until I stumbled upon the information.

It starts with a My Social Security Account. If you don't have an account, you're going to need to set one up. Yes, I know: you'd think that you'd need to set up a Medicare Account. But the trick is that you can't do that until you have a Medicare Number, and you can't get that until you have one of these:

And where do you get that? You guessed it, from your My Social Security Account. 

The process for applying for Medicare Parts A and B is pretty simple, but there's one catch: one of the questions they ask is if you are covered by any other insurance policy. I almost answered YES, because I am, but then I realized that I was dealing with a government entity, and I stopped and called Social Security. After a rather lengthy wait (I've been on hold for hours in the past, so brace yourself and have a beverage prepared) I was able to talk to a woman who told me that I should answer NO, because what the question meant was Are you covered by any other insurance policy AFTER you turn 65 / go on Medicare. Now, why the heck didn't they put that in the question? I don't know. But I do know that if you answer this question incorrectly, you get sent down a completely different rabbit hole, and I don't know how (or if) you get back from there.

Okay. After you finish up, you just have to wait. It took about a week for me, and I think I got an email to confirm that I was IN. 

At which point I thought I could go back to my Social Security Account, get my Medicare Number, and start applying for an Advantage Plan...because you can't do that until you've been accepted by Medicare and have taken care of signing up for Parts A (Hospital Insurance) and B (doctors' services, outpatient care, and other medical services that Part A doesn't cover). *

I searched every nook and cranny of that website. I couldn't find my number, just the indication that I would get my card "soon." As in maybe in a month. I was way too nervous to wait that long...and my faith in the USPS isn't what it used to be. So I called Social Security and asked how I could find my Medicare number online. And I was told by a very nice guy that he "thought it was on there somewhere," but he didn't know where. I searched some more. Nothing. Finally, I found a place on the Medicare website where I could do a Live Chat. So I did that. Here's how it went.

[4:34:32 pm]: Thank you for contacting Medicare.gov Live Chat.

[4:34:35 pm]: Brother K. 
I will turn 65 soon, and I have been approved for Medicare. I have not yet received my card, however, and am anxious to apply for the Advantage Plan offered by -----. To do so I need my Medicare number. Can I find this number online?

[4:34:35 pm]: Please wait while you are connected to an agent.

[4:34:44 pm]: You are now connected with Medicare.gov Live Chat.

Thank you for contacting Medicare.gov Live Chat. My name is M. For privacy purposes, please do not disclose any personal information such as your Social Security Number, Medicare ID, or any other sensitive medical or personal information.

[4:35:00 pm]: Brother K
Okay.

[4:36:37 pm]: M

I will be happy to assist

[4:36:44 pm]: Brother K

Thank you.

[4:37:49 pm]: M

You can call into Medicare to get your number.

[4:38:19 pm]: Brother K

I called previously and they would not give me the number. Can you tell me which number to call?

[4:39:11 pm]: M

Call, (800) 772-1213

[4:39:37 pm]: Brother K

Thank you, I'll try again.

[4:39:52 pm]: M

Thank you for contacting Medicare.gov Live Chat. We are here to help you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

[4:39:58 pm]: M

Left the session

So that seems pretty straightforward, doesn't it? I called the number M had given me. And my Caller ID identified it as...🥁🥁🥁...Social Security. So of course I hung up. 

I went back to the Medicare website and hidden away at the bottom of the page under the Take Action heading was a link entitled  Talk to someone.  Clicking on that gave you the option to Live Chat (no thank you) or to call at 1-800-MEDICARE. I bated my breath and called.

I talked to a guy who said that he couldn't give me my Medicare number, but that he could transfer me to a higher up person who could. He also asked me if I had heard about the Benefit Verification Letter from Social Security. I avowed that I had not heard of that, and he told me that he would send it to me. He then transferred me to the higher up person. She said that she could indeed give me the number, and told me to log in to my Social Security account. I sighed and did as I was told. She then told me to go to Benefits and look for...you guessed it...the Benefit Verification Letter from Social Security. I was dubious, as I knew that this had not been there when I'd searched the site previously...but lo and behold, there it was. Apparently when the first guy I talked to had said he was going to send me that letter he meant through email. (Which is surprising, since there are very few things that Social Security does which are indicative of any presence in or even knowledge of the 21st Century.)

I opened the letter and there in the body of it was my very own Medicare number.

Ta Da.

So that's how you do it.

If you don't want to wait for the post office to deliver a flimsy paper card, make sure that you request a Benefit Verification Letter from Social Security.

And then you can go set up your Medicare Account. 

No, no, thank YOU.

* And if you're wondering...yes, there are also Parts C and D. C is Medicare Advantage, which includes Parts A and B and adds prescription drug coverage and vision and dental...maybe. Read the fine print. When I looked at this plan, I thought it was pretty lousy coverage. You can look at many other plans from regular health care vendors. Judging between them is a nightmare, so I'd suggest you get hold of an independent agent and let them do the navigating for you. You don't pay for this service, which makes it a little more savory. (The agents are paid by the insurance company.) And Part D is prescription drug coverage. There are some other Parts, but so far as I can tell they are now extinct. There is also Medigap Coverage, which helps to pay for your share of the Medicare stuff, since there are copays to deal with.