Helping a parent with Medicare? You can work through it together.

Four things to settle first

1. 1

   Get authorization before you need it

   Ask your parent how they would like you to help, and check what authorization Medicare, Social Security, or their insurer needs before discussing their personal information. Different organizations may use different forms.

2. 2

   Find out the exact month

   Their sign-up window runs seven months: the three months before the month they turn 65, that month, and the three months after. Everything else on this page hangs off that date, so pin it down first.

3. 3

   Ask whether they’re still working

   If your parent, or their spouse, still has coverage through a job, whether they can safely delay Part B depends on how many people that employer employs. Twenty or more usually means they can wait. Fewer than twenty usually means Medicare pays first whether or not they’ve enrolled, and claims can fall through the gap.

4. 4

   Know which window closes quietly

   There’s a separate six-month window for supplemental coverage that opens once they’re 65 and on Part B. Inside it, their health history can’t be used to deny them or charge more. Outside it, in most states, it can, and that matters most for exactly the parents whose health is already the reason you’re researching this.

Questions I get from adult children

Can I enroll my parent myself?

You can help research options, organize paperwork, and join a conversation with your parent’s permission. Taking action on their behalf may require separate legal authority. Confirm what the relevant agency or plan requires.

My parent is overwhelmed and doesn’t want to talk about it. What do I do?

Start by asking what concerns them most. You can work through one question at a time, beginning with any upcoming dates. If they would like help, I can talk with them at their pace.

They live in the Triad but I don’t. Can you still help?

Yes, coverage depends on where they live, not where you do. I’m happy to have you both on the call, which is usually the easiest way to do this anyway.

What does this cost?

I am a licensed insurance agent. There is no charge for talking with me. I represent a limited number of insurance companies rather than the whole market, so there will be plans I can’t show you, and I’ll tell you when that’s the case rather than pretend otherwise. If you enroll in a plan or buy a policy through me, the insurance company pays me a commission. Your premium is not higher for using an agent. If what you need is something I can’t offer, I’ll say so and point you toward who can.

Does Medicare cover a nursing home stay for my parent?

Mostly no. Medicare can pay for up to 100 days of skilled nursing after a qualifying hospital stay, but it does not cover long-term custodial care.