Some answers to your Medicare questions

By Kiplinger
Posted on July 16, 2018

Learn the answers to some common Medicare questions, courtesy of the experts at Kiplinger’s Retirement Report and Kiplinger’s Personal Finance. Whether you’re already retired or just starting to plan for retirement, brushing up on your knowledge of Medicare will pay off.

Healthcare pre-Medicare

My husband will retire when he turns 65 and sign up for Medicare. I am five years younger, work part-time and have no benefits. So, what are my options for healthcare?

One is to buy coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplace. Go to Healthcare.gov to find a link to your state’s marketplace. Despite the political uncertainty surrounding the ACA, it’s worth reviewing your options.

You can buy coverage outside the marketplaces, but you won’t receive any subsidy under the ACA.

Another possibility: You may qualify for COBRA, which would let you continue on your husband’s former employer’s plan for up to 18 months. This is likely to be expensive, because you would have to pay both the employer and employee portion of the premium.

Finding a Medicare doctor

I’m moving to a new town, and I’m having a hard time finding a doctor who accepts Medicare patients. Are there any good resources to help?

First, know that you’re not alone. A report to Congress last year noted that 20 percent of Medicare beneficiaries seeking a new primary care physician said they had a “big problem” finding one willing to accept Medicare’s approved amount as payment in full for covered services. Another 15 percent reported a “small problem.”

Start by checking the “physician compare” tool at Medicare.gov. Enter the new Zip code and the type of doctor you’re looking for, and specify that you want to see providers who accept the Medicare-approved amount as payment in full. The search will produce a list of physicians in the area who accept Medicare.

New HSA contributions once on Medicare

I am about to sign up for Medicare at age 65. Can I still contribute to a health savings account once I enroll?

You can’t make new contributions to an HSA after you enroll in Medicare, but you can continue to use any money that was already in the account tax-free for out-of-pocket medical expenses, such as deductibles, co-payments, your share of prescription-drug costs, and a portion of long-term care insurance premiums based on your age (up to $4,160 in 2018 for ages 61 to 70, for example).

After turning age 65, you can also use HSA money tax-free to pay premiums for Medicare Part B and Part D, and for Medicare Advantage plans.

You can make tax-deductible contributions (or pretax if through an employer) to an HSA in 2018 if you have an eligible health insurance policy with a deductible of at least $1,350 for single coverage or $2,700 for family coverage.

You can’t make HSA contributions after enrolling in Medicare, but you can make pro-rated contributions in the year you sign up, based on the number of months before your Medicare coverage takes effect.

Using wife’s HSA to pay Medicare premiums

I’m on Medicare, but my wife is in her 50s and is covered by an HSA-eligible health insurance policy. Can she use HSA money tax-free to pay for my Medicare premiums and other HSA-eligible medical expenses?

She can use HSA money tax-free to pay for eligible expenses for herself, her spouse and her dependents, so she can use money in her health account to pay for your out-of-pocket medical expenses, such as vision and dental care, as well as co-payments for medical care or prescription drugs.

But HSA money can be used tax-free for premiums for Medicare parts B and D and Medicare Advantage only if the account owner is 65 or older. Because it’s her account and she is only in her fifties, she can’t do it. After she turns 65, she can use those tax-free dollars for Medicare premiums — her own as well as yours.