Medicare Integration with Company Group Health Plans

Once considered a late retirement, today the “norm” is becoming for many to work well into their most knowledgeable years, far past age 65, the coverage age date for Medicare.  Luckily for us, Tom Clark explained the nuances of this at our Private Client Roundtable Event, earlier this year.

Integration of Medicare with Company Group Plans  

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Here are the key items to understand when working past the Medicare benefit commencement age.

• Employer of 20 or more people and still working, employer group plan will pay first
• Employee may want to take Part A to be a back up to employer group coverage
  •  High Deductible Plan pre-tax deferral of HSA not allowed
  • Also, if taking Social Security and age 65 will be automatically enrolled in Part A Medicare, again disallowing HSA contributions

As mentioned earlier in this post, this situation is one of the only times you may want to not sign up for Part B as this would commence the premiums which are secondary and overlap to your current employer based group coverage.

In our experiences, it is always better to let both your employer and the government/Medicare your intentions, clearly and repeatedly. Keep good records of your decisions as well ….  J. K. Financial, Inc.

Have a Great Day!

John A. Kvale CFA, CFP