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I will be starting to receive my SS benefit when I turn 70 this October. I understand that my first check will be issued in November. Since I began Medicare when I retired several years ago I have been paying my quarterly-billed Part B premium through the Medicare.gov website. I anticipate my next invoice (for Oct.- Dec. of this year) will be mailed to me in the next couple of weeks, with a due date of Sept. 30th. My understanding is that once I start SS, the Part B premium will be deducted from my monthly benefit– I do not have a choice to continue paying online every quarter.
To those in the HD community who have faced my situation stated above, how do I navigate the payment of my Part B premium? Do I just sit tight and not pay that invoice with the expectation that the “system” knows this and will adjust accordingly? A related note… I trust people, but not “systems”.
I am not taking SS yet, but am in year 3 on Medicare A&B. When that began, I was on the automatic quarterly billing cycle. I prefer as much stability from month to month for expenses, so requested monthly billing and that was granted. In the online conversation with the Medicare representative, I was assured the monthly billing cycle would continue when I began receiving SS benefits.
Bill, I will be going through a similar process later this year when my wife and I begin our Social Security and Railroad Retirement. Railroad Retirement has its own version of Medicare which is similar to others except you pay the Railroad Retirement Board quarterly and the claims are processed by a private company in Augusta, Georgia. I am told my wife will have to convert to the Railroad Retirement version of Medicare. It will be interesting to see how things settle out between SS & RR.
I transitioned to SS last July when I turned 70. Prior to that I made monthly Medicare payments. After SS the medicare payment is withheld from my SS payment each month (no invoice). Your SS account benefit letter will show the gross SS amount and the deduction for monthly medicare and the resulting net amount. Each year, you’ll receive a 1099 for the SS benefits you receive for tax purposes. You should also be able to download the 1099 from your SS account.
I was in this situation and paid quarterly also. When I started SS, they started taking the Medicare premium out right away. SS sent me a refund check for the amount that I double paid. It was automatic. I would go ahead and pay the bill that is due Sept 30. You should receive a refund. That is what I did. Chris
Just an FYI – IRMAA payers who do not yet collect SS have monthly Medicare billing only. Medicare.gov will however accept online payments in advance of billing. I’ve paid early when it has been advantageous for tax purposes.
I had the same situation about eight years ago. My experience was that I paid my last three month invoice when due in full. When they started withholding my Medicare premium I was overpaid by two months and they somewhat quickly refunded the duplicate payment by direct deposit direct to my bank account without additional action on my part.
That was eight years ago, I do not know if anything has changed. The most important factor for me was keeping the part B insurance in place and avoid any potential hiccups in regards to my part D and supplemental Medigap policy.
Hope this helps.
When you start collecting Social Security benefits, the transition happens automatically. The Social Security Administration (SSA) and Medicare coordinate behind the scenes to switch your Medicare Part B payment method.
Automatic Deduction Begins Your Part B premiums will stop being billed directly (whether you were paying quarterly by check, online, or via Medicare Easy Pay). Instead, the monthly Part B premium is withheld directly from your Social Security check before it hits your bank account.
So, based on your response to what I shared, I shouldn’t even receive an invoice from Medicare for Oct.- Dec. On my SSA account webpage, it states that my application has been approved, but I will not receive a letter until closer to my claiming month.