My District office worked with the local Social Security office to help a constituent get a Medicare enrollment late fee waived after she received bad advice from a former employer
Three years ago, Kate was 65 and getting ready to retire. She consulted her employer’s benefits department for advice on what to do about Medicare. Kate carried the insurance for herself, her husband, and their 23-year-old daughter, and when she retired, she wanted to make sure that everyone had insurance coverage. Kate was told by her company that she did not need to sign up for Medicare until her daughter turned 26 and was on her own insurance.
Three years later, when Kate’s daughter was about to turn 26, she went to her local Social Security Administration office to sign up for Medicare. She discovered that not only would she and her husband have to pay a steep penalty for what was considered late enrollment into Medicare; but they would have to wait to sign up until the General Enrollment Period the following year.
Kate came to our office very upset since she had done everything right and now, due to some very bad advice from her former employer, she would be without insurance for at least four months and would incur a permanent late enrollment penalty on she and her husband’s Medicare premiums. Our office was able to help Kate utilize a special enrollment period to enroll into Medicare and also waive the late fee because of the incorrect information she was given. Thanks to the help of my office, Kate will save nearly $800 every year for the rest of her life. |
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