Medicare
This is health insurance through the Social Security, for those awarded Disability Insurance, Widow’s/Widower’s disability and Adult Child’s Disability benefits recipients. It is not available for those who are eligible for SSI benefits only, or for family members.
Recipients can elect to have Medicare coverage Part A (hospital), Part B (medical treatment), and Part D (prescriptions).
Medicare does not become available until the 25th month after your “Date of Entitlement”. The date of entitlement is the 6th month following the month in which your disability was found to begin. However, Social Security is not required to pay benefits going back more than 12 months before your application. Therefore, if your date of entitlement would have otherwise been a month that was more than a year before you filed your application, the date of entitlement will be moved up. This is one reason you do not want to delay too long in filing your application.
Unfortunately, the claims process for many people here in Florida is taking so long that they are actually eligible for Medicare at the time they win their case.
The Medicare premium will be taken out of your monthly check. In 2008, Part A is provided for free if you or your spouse worked more than ten years, the premium for Part B is $ 96.40/month for most people, and the Part D premium is on average about $27/month. There are deductibles that apply, and those can be obtained on the SSA website. |
