When Is My Medicare Effective Date?

Summary:

When your Medicare coverage kicks in determines your Medicare effective date. Many people’s 65th birthday falls on this day, which is the first of the month. Your Medicare Parts A and B may have various effective dates. When precisely does your Medicare coverage begin? You are aware that you are eligible for Medicare at age 65 or after 25 months of collecting disability benefits.

When Does Medicare Start for Me?

You may easily find your Medicare effective date for Original Medicare, Parts A and B, by looking at the lower right corner of your Medicare card or by consulting a letter from the Railroad Retirement Board or the Social Security Administration.

Call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213, 7 AM to 7 PM, Monday through Friday, if you have any queries about the beginning of your Medicare coverage. Call 1-800-325-0778 to access TTY services.

Call the Railroad Retirement Board at 1-877-772-5772, Monday through Friday, from 9 AM to 3:30 PM, if you once worked for a railroad. Call (312) 751-4701 for TTY assistance.

Depending on when you sign up and which election period you are eligible for, the day your coverage under a Medicare Advantage plan or Medicare Prescription Drug Plan begins may differ. You can speak with the Medicare health or prescription drug plan directly or check any mail you may have gotten from them if you have inquiries about your effective date for these kinds of Medicare Advantage plan alternatives.

Can I start Medicare before my 65th birthday? 

A Medicare initial enrollment period will be available to you. Your coverage will begin on the first day of the month you turn 65 if you enroll in Medicare Parts A and B within the first three months of your initial enrollment period.

Say, for instance, that you were born on August 31. Your initial enrollment period will begin in May, which is three months before your birthday month. Those who join up in May, June, or July will begin receiving coverage on August 1.

When does Medicare start? 

Depending on when you enroll, your Medicare coverage may not begin right away. If you already receive Social Security payments, you might be enrolled automatically.

Keep in mind that enrolling beyond the month of your 65th birthday delays the commencement of your Medicare coverage.

If you enroll in either Medicare Part A or Part B this month:

Your protection begins:

3 or 2 months before your 65th birthday

651 months after you sign up, on the first day of your birthday month, you turn

1 to 3 months following your 65th birthday

the day following your enrollment throughout January 1 through March 31 July 1st general enrollment period

Does Medicare backdate credentialing?

Even if you enroll in Medicare Part B during a Special Enrollment Period, there are several instances when you can do so without incurring a late fee. These circumstances consist of:

• You are still employed and under your employer’s coverage. If you have a group health plan or if you or your spouse work for the firm that offers the coverage, you can enroll in Part A and Part B at any time.
• After you or your spouse ceases working or if your group health plan coverage is lost, you have eight months to enroll.
• When you stop working, regardless of whether you have COBRA or other non-Medicare coverage, your 8-month Special Enrollment Period begins.
• Volunteers who are serving in a foreign country — Contact Social Security for details
• Some individuals with TRICARE — Contact TRICARE for details.

Is Medicare Retroactive to the Application Date?

The moment a Medicare recipient becomes qualified for Part A of the Medicare program, they can enroll. The Part A coverage will begin six months after they joined up, but no sooner than the month they initially became eligible for Medicare will be covered (retroactively).