How early should you apply for Social Security & Medicare?

When you get ready to retire, where do you start? Noblesville residents are very lucky to live close to the Social Security Administration field office in Anderson. (Do not go to the Indianapolis office.) They are a great office to work with and the lines are not long. Much of the country can’t get walk-in appointments and must wait a month or two to get an appointment with the SSA.

For best results, go as soon as they open in the morning. This is the same for calling the 800 number. You can expect 45 minute or longer delays, which are lowest first thing in the morning. Most of the times that I have to call the SSA, I have to hang up because I’ve been waiting on hold too long and have to go somewhere or meet a client. Then I have to start all over the next day. You have been warned!

The Social Security Administration is working with the same funding and staffing from 10 years ago. In other words, they are not at their best! Working to serve over 60 million Americans – all while under a lot of stress – creates an environment for you to get wrong information. Not a day goes by where I don’t get at least one email from someone wanting to verify information that they were told at the SSA which is different from what I teach on my social media accounts. Ninety percent of the time, the information they want me to verify is, in fact, incorrect. This is easy to verify on the ssa.gov website. Please don’t get ready to retire and expect the SSA to be very helpful. It could happen, but it is unlikely.

For example, you can apply for any Social Security benefit four months prior to the date you are eligible for it to begin, or you want it to begin. But if you are a good German like me, you might try to do it even earlier! In which case they will email you that you are not eligible for Social Security. This alarms people.

What the SSA should do is inform the Germans that they are applying too soon and can apply the following month. It’s simple, but it’s now how our government operates.

If you are going to apply for your own benefits, it’s easy to do online at ssa.gov. But if you are applying as a spouse, ex-spouse, or widow, you should go in person. You will need to provide original documentation before the SSA will talk to you about your benefits. You need your marriage license (and possibly divorce decree). You don’t need a death certificate as the funeral homes forward that to the SSA.

To apply for Medicare, you don’t call 1-800-MEDICARE. The Social Security Administration handles the administration of Medicare. You can apply for Medicare three months before you are eligible for it to begin. Many people think they can’t sign up until they reach their 65th birthday. But Medicare starts on the first day of the month that you reach age 65. If you were born on the first day of the month, your Medicare start date is the first of the preceding month.

Medicare is weird if you apply after you turn 65. If you are one month late, they won’t start it for two months. If you are two months late, they won’t start it for three months. And if you are four months late, then you can’t enroll until the following January. You’ll also end up with a lifetime late penalty for enrolling into Parts B and D late.

If you are applying after age 65, because you continued to have employer health insurance on a group over 20 people, that is considered creditable coverage. There is no penalty and you can retire at any time and have your own enrollment window. Ideally, you still enroll into Medicare three months prior to your retirement.

Sylvia Gordon is co-founder of The Medicare Family, headquartered in Noblesville, where she educates thousands on Medicare and Social Security in all 50 states. You can learn more at TheMedicareFamily.com.