Ask Rusty – I’Ll Be 65 Soon And Am Working. Must I Enroll In Medicare?

Dear Rusty: I will be 65 in October and I am working full-time. My goal is to work until age 67, which is my full retirement age, or until age 70. I heard I have to apply for Medicare Part A only. Is this true or will I be penalized? And do I have to go to the Social Security office to do this, or can I do it online? And then will they be still giving me my Medicare through the next five years of working, or do I have to pay for something? I will have my own healthcare insurance. Thank you for your help. Signed: Confused

Dear Confused: There are two things you should be aware of:

1. You do not need to claim Social Security benefits when you enroll in Medicare

2. You do not need to enroll in Medicare at age 65 if you have “creditable” healthcare coverage from your employer (“creditable” is a group plan with at least 20 participants)

Thus, it is perfectly okay for you to delay taking your Social Security benefits until age 67 (your SS full retirement age), or even until age 70 when you will get the maximum SS benefit you are entitled to. And if you now have “creditable” healthcare coverage from your employer, you can delay enrolling in Medicare until such time as your employer's healthcare coverage ends. When you stop working, you will enter a Medicare Special Enrollment Period (SEP), during which you can enroll in Medicare without incurring a Late Enrollment Penalty.

Whenever you decide to enroll in Medicare (or Social Security), you will not need to visit your local SSA office to do so. You can enroll in Medicare either online at www.ssa.gov/medicare/sign-up or you can call SSA at 1.800.772.1213 to make an appointment to enroll in Medicare on the telephone. Similarly, when you are ready to claim Social Security, you can do so online at www.ssa.gov/apply or you can call 1.800.772.1213 to make an appointment to apply for SS over the phone. To apply online, however, you should first create your personal “my Social Security” online account at www.ssa.gov/myaccount. Creating your online SS account now (at age 65) will facilitate later online enrollment and will also provide you with an estimate of your SS benefit amounts at various ages – e.g., now at age 65, at your FRA of 67, or at age 70. And that should help you decide when it is best for you to claim Social Security.

A few final points:

You should verify with your employer’s health insurance provider that they don’t require you to enroll in Medicare at age 65. Most employer plans don’t, but some do.

You don’t need to enroll in Medicare Part A or Part B now as long as your employer’s coverage is creditable. And it’s okay to enroll in Medicare a couple of months prior to your employer’s creditable healthcare coverage ending (when you stop working), requesting that your Medicare coverage starts when your employer’s healthcare ends. This will ensure that there is no gap in your healthcare coverage. If your employer coverage is creditable, you will not suffer a Medicare Late Enrollment Penalty for enrolling after age 65.

If you claim Social Security benefits at any time prior to your full retirement age (FRA) and are still working, you will be subject to Social Security’s Annual Earnings Test (AET), which limits how much you can earn before they take away some of your benefits. The AET lasts until you reach your FRA (67), after which you can earn as much as you like without your SS benefits being affected.

Whenever you claim your Social Security benefits, you will be required to take Medicare Part A, which is coverage for inpatient hospitalization services. Medicare Part A is free because you are also eligible for Social Security. But you don’t need to enroll in Part A at age 65 unless you also claim Social Security.

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Medicare Part B, which is coverage for outpatient healthcare services (doctors, medical tests, etc.), is optional if you have creditable employer coverage as explained above. You do not need to enroll in Medicare Part B (for which there is a monthly premium of $202.90 in 2026) until your employer’s creditable healthcare coverage ends, even if you claim Social Security earlier.

This article is intended for information purposes only and does not represent legal or financial guidance. It presents the opinions and interpretations of the AMAC Foundation’s staff, trained and accredited by the National Social Security Association (NSSA). NSSA and the AMAC Foundation and its staff are not affiliated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration (amacfoundation.org/programs/social-security-dvisory) or email us at ssadvisor@amacfoundation.org.

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