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Original Medicare refers to Medicare Part A and Medicare Part B, which are managed by the federal government. People can see any doctor that accepts Medicare and the government pays a portion of the cost.

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There are 2 times you can receive Medicare benefits:
1. Turning 65
2. Disabled and collecting social security disability for 24 months

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There are 2 ways for you to apply for Medicare:
1. Automatically - if you are collecting Social Security benefits you will automatically receive Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) 3 months prior to your 65th birthday.

2. If you are NOT receiving Social Security benefits when you turn 65 you will have to apply for Original Medicare. You may do this by going to the Social Security Administration's website or as an agent we can assist you with this process. Your initial enrollment periods begins three months prior to your 65th birthday and extends three months after.

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There are four "parts" of Medicare. Here's a quick rundown:

Part A is Hospital Insurance, or HI. This primarily covers hospital stays and some stays in skilled nursing facilities

Part B is Medical Insurance. This covers doctors' visits, lab tests, and outpatient procedures, just to name a few.

Part C is Medicare Advantage. These are plans offered by private companies to provide Medicare benefits.

Part D is Prescription Drug Coverage.

Parts A and B are collectively referred to as "Original Medicare," and are generally what's being referred to when we use the term Medicare.

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Medicare Part A is free for a majority of eligible individuals, but does have a deductible of $1600 per benefit period, as well as coinsurance requirements if your hospital stay lasts more than 60 days or if your skilled nursing stay extends beyond 20 days.

Part B has a monthly premium of $164.90 in 2023. This premium may change every year and higher-income Medicare eligible people pay significantly more based on IRMAA rules. In addition, Medicare Part B has an annual deductible of $226 for 2023.

Part D, prescription drug coverage plans, have an estimated average monthly premium of $43.00 for 2023.

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Medicare doesn't cover long-term care, dental care, eye exams or glasses, dentures, most dental care, medical care overseas, cosmetic surgery, massage therapy, acupuncture, hearing aids, gym memberships, routine foot care, and prescription drugs.

Medicare only covers 80% of your medical services, you are responsible for the other 20%.

This list is what Original Medicare (Parts A and B) doesn't cover. Certain Medicare health plans may cover some of these services.

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Since there are many copays and deductibles, private insurers sell Medicare Supplemental Insurance Plans, or Medigap plans. There are 10 different varieties of Medigap plans, with Medigap Plan F (the most comprehensive) the most commonly chosen option. While Medigap plans are standardized in terms of the coverage they provide, costs can vary significantly.

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It depends what kind of health insurance you have. If you have insurance through your employer or your spouse's employer and the primary insured is still working, you may not be required to enroll in Medicare as long as the company sponsoring your coverage has at least 20 employees. In this case, you'll have a special enrollment period after you (or your spouse) retire or leave that employer.

On the other hand, if your insurance is through an employer you've already retired from, you still have to sign up at 65. If you are required to sign up for Medicare Part B, and don't, you'll face a permanent penalty of 10% of the Medicare Part B premium for every year you were supposed to enroll but didn't.

It's also worth noting that since Medicare Part A is free, it generally doesn't make sense to delay signing up for it, even if you're not required to. Your employer's insurance will be your primary coverage, and Medicare will be secondary. However, since Part B comes with a premium, it does make sense to wait if you're still covered by your employer's plan.

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While Medicare beneficiaries cannot set up HSAs after they are enrolled in Medicare, they may keep an HSA if it was in existence prior to Medicare enrollment. For example, an individual previously covered under an employer’s HSA+HDHP plan who chooses to retire may keep the HSA even after terminating the HDHP coverage and enrolling in Medicare. Alternatively, an individual who chooses to keep an HSA+HDHP plan (or remain in a spouse’s HSA plan) and dually enroll in Medicare may keep the HSA. However, individuals may not continue to contribute funds to the HSA if enrolled in Medicare (or other, non-HDHP plan).

If a beneficiary chooses to keep a HSA after enrolling in Medicare, he or she may continue to withdraw existing funds from the account to pay for “qualified medical expenses” on a tax-free basis. Qualified medical expenses are defined by the IRS and include a large range of health care services, medications, and equipment. The definition also includes Medicare premiums and copays, a valuable way for Medicare beneficiaries to make use of their unused HSA funds