Mother in law Medicare enrollment - non English speaker.

[Brons2]

There are a number of you who seem pretty knowledgable about Medicare. I need some pointers with my mother in law's Medicare. She's turning 70 this year and was recently kicked off her Obamacare plan. As with my wife she is a Brazilian immigrant who legally emigrated to the US and has recently become a naturalized citizen.

Since neither her or my wife are familiarized with a lot of US governmental systems, and I myself (Natural born US citizen) have been fairly ignorant of Medicare until somewhat recently, I need some pointers about what to do next. I want to help her, because she is just about the nicest MIL that anyone has ever had. I don't think she has ever said a cross word to me in the 7 years that my wife and I have been together. She also speaks what I would call halting English at best.

Questions:

• Where do you go to enroll?
• Can I enroll her now?
• If not, when is the next open enrollment period?
• Is there a financial penalty for not enrolling her sooner?
• Are there coverage limitations based on her late enrollment?
• What is the best coverage for someone of relatively limited means?

She has Social Security based on the time worked in the US at relatively low wage jobs, so suffice it to say, not very much. Also has some Brazil benefits from her deceased husband but that also is not very much. Her 3 kids including my wife pay her apartment rent. So anything that involves high out of pocket is probably going to come out of my wife and I, and wife's brother and syster's pockets.

Any advice appreciated...

 

[55hambone]

You enroll for Medicare with the Social Security Administration, but if you google Medicare enrollment you would think that you enroll through the insurance companies. They want to sell you supplements. I don't think that you have a specific enrollment period, but SSA can tell you that. If you don't enroll within the 5-month window around your 65th birthday (your birthday month, the two months before and the two months after), the monthly premium is higher. I have Medicare parts A and B for about $164 a month, but I'm still working with insurance provided so I don't need a supplement. Be careful with the supplements-from what I hear, some are near worthless.

 

[PontiacHO]

I went to our local SSA office. Got there early. Stood in line until opened. Drew a number and was called back in about 30 minutes. Prior to that I attempted to speak with a “representative” after being on hold in the queue for literally hours. He didn’t know anything. He laughed at me for asking questions. If I could have reached through the phone line….

 

[Boomer]

When you gat Medicare, you can get additional insurance, either an Advantage plan or a Medicare supplement. Advantage has restrictions on doctor's a deductible (can be thousands) but also offers non-Medicare help with dental, vision, etc. The supplements are more expensive (I have Type F) but they pay everything that Medicare does not pay. Part F is no longer available to new enrollees but Type G is. The advantage plans can kill you if your health takes a major turn for the worse and you have to pay maybe a $5000 copay or deductible every year. Decide which you want and enroll with a reputable insurance company (Aetna comes to mind).

With Medicare supplements, you will also need Medicare Part D which covers drugs. Advantage plans usually cover drugs to some extent.

 

[Nukeman7]

In a previous thread about Medicare, I posted a video primer on the basic ins and outs on the different types of coverage. If you have not viewed the video, you need to do so (probably several times) before attempting to move forward on your MIL's behalf.

Medicare Discussion on BITOG

Normally, you have to sign up for Medicare Part A (free) and Part B ($174.70/mo.) when you turn 65 y.o. (+/- 3 mos.) to avoid a monthly penalty for life. If your MIL was not eligible at that timeframe (perhaps due to lack of U.S. citizenship in this case), the penalty may be waived as long as she signs up within a Special Enrollment Period (i.e.,~60 days) after a "significant life event" (e.g., acquiring U.S. citizenship, retirement, loss of other medical coverage). I am not familiar with "Obamacare" so I have no insight on whether losing it is considered a "significant life event". Be aware that once your MIL enrolls for Medicare Parts A & B, the monthly premium ($174.70 + any applicable late-enrollment penalty) will automatically be deducted from her Social Security check.

I'm sure that Alarmguy will be chiming in soon to espouse the benefits of the Medicare Advantage plans over the Medigap supplemental plans. It is all relative to individual risk tolerance similar to buying full coverage auto insurance vs. only liability insurance. One size does not fit all; however, given the limited background info you provided in Post #1, a wisely chosen Advantage plan might be the better fit for your MIL's situation. Barring major medical illness, most individuals will receive more benefits from an Advantage plan within a year than the total annually premium if they use all of the available benefits (e.g., dental, eyecare, prescription drugs, hearing aids, gym memberships). The key to choosing the proper Advantage plan is to know how much maximum out-of-pocket costs you can tolerate in a year in the event of a catastrophic medical situation.

After digesting all of the information on Medicare.gov, you will need to meet in-person with a representative from the SSA to discuss your options and liabilities. Ask if a Portuguese language fluent individual is available to assist/interpret.

 

[Pablo]

She has Social Security based on the time worked in the US.....

If she is eligible and was collecting SS then she should have been automatically enrolled in Medicare, so it seems odd to me her marketplace insurance would have kept going after 65.

I would go the SS website and start digging. You or your wife might have to pretend you are her to log in........just saying........nod, wink.