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Medicare General Enrollment, which runs from January 1 to March 31 each year, provides people the opportunity to sign up for Medicare Part A and Part B. If you missed your Initial Enrollment Period for Medicare, this is your chance to sign up for benefits.
What You Can Do During General Enrollment
From January through March, new Medicare beneficiaries can enroll in Original Medicare, which is Medicare Part A or Part B. If you already have Part A and just need to sign up for Part B, you can fill out a form and return it to your local Social Security office to get the medical insurance benefits added to your coverage.
Who Needs General Enrollment
Often, Medicare General Enrollment is needed by people who neglected to sign up for coverage during their Initial Enrollment Periods, when they first became eligible to apply for coverage. Suppose you miss your Initial Enrollment and do not qualify for a Special Enrollment Period. In that case, you must wait for the next General Enrollment Period to sign up for your Medicare benefits.
Coverage After General Enrollment
If you sign up for Medicare Part A or Part B benefits during General Enrollment from January 1 to March 31, your coverage will begin on July 1.
What coverage can you expect? Medicare Part A is hospital insurance, which covers inpatient care in a hospital or skilled nursing facility, along with nursing home care, hospice care, and home health care. Medicare Part B is medical insurance, and it covers preventative and medically necessary care, including clinical research, ambulance services, durable medical equipment, mental health care, and limited outpatient prescription drugs.
Medicare Advantage and Part D After General Enrollment
Did you want to sign up for prescription drug coverage or a Medicare Advantage plan? Once you’ve used the General Enrollment Period to sign up for Medicare Part A and Part B, a Special Enrollment Period opens up for you to sign up for additional coverage. You have from April through June to sign up for a Medicare Advantage plan or Medicare Part D prescription drug plan. Like your Part A and Part B coverage, these benefits will also start on July 1.
Medicare Late Enrollment Penalties
Be aware that you may have to pay late enrollment penalties for signing up after becoming eligible for coverage. Medicare Part B has a late enrollment penalty that adds 10% to your monthly premiums for each year you went without enrolling in Part B. Medicare Part D adds 1% of the national base beneficiary premium multiplied by the number of full months you went without creditable drug coverage when you could have had Part D.
Want to learn about how you can sign up during General Enrollment? Let our team at Insured for Life help you find the coverage you deserve. Call us today for more information.
