Q. I am three years and eight months younger than my wife. She had carried the insurance premium for both of us since 1976. I had to take up Blue Cross/Blue Shield this year myself, since Medicare is not a family plan. I plan to retire for health reasons on April 27, 2013, with 34 years of service, but I do not know if my Federal Employees Health Benefits plan will continue, due to the recent acquiring of my own plan. I was under her plan as a dependent for 35 years, but I am also a federal employee. If…
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Q. I was approved for OPM disability retirement and Social Security. I understand that I can elect Medicare Part B coverage and pay an additional premium. I already am covered under the Federal Employees Health Benefits plan and pay that premium. I also have been advised that I will pay a penalty for every year that I do not sign up for Medicare Part B while eligible. Is that so in every case? Should I pay both premiums? I am 52 years old. A. Yes, there is a penalty for every year you don’t sign up for Part B. However,…
Q. I took a reduced Social Security annuity since I decided to draw two years ago at the age of 62. My husband was a government meteorologist for 33 years — three of them being Air Force. We were given the option to pay fully the Social Security for his years in the Air Force. No pension. It counted to his government service and that pension. So we did. $3,600 cash. He retired at 55. So he took a true reduced government annuity, since he did not retire at 65 with the 33 years of service. In the government, you…
Q. I am retired and have medical family plan 105 Blue Cross/Blue Shield insurance. My husband turns 65 in December and will be on Medicare. I understand I can keep his coverage under my health insurance along with his Medicare Plan. If I should die, is he still covered under this insurance? A. Yes, but only if you have elected a survivor annuity for him.
Q. I am a retired FERS employee. I elected to continue my federal health insurance (family plan) as the supplemental insurance for Medicare. I did not take the supplemental (Part B) insurance that Medicare offered. If I die, can my wife continue the federal health insurance? For how long? Can she keep the federal health insurance for the rest of her life? Can she have the “single” rate on the insurance? P.S. Do you foresee any change that the health insurance carriers would drop the coverages for retirees? A. As long as she is entitled to a survivor annuity and…
Q. I hope to retire under CSRS at age 60. Will Medicare deductions continue to be taken from my CSRS pension checks when I retire? If so, will the deductions end when I turn 65 and am eligible to invoke Medicare coverage? A. Deductions for Medicare are only taken from earnings from wages or self-employment, not annuities.
Q. I retired under CSRS after 31 years. My gross CSRS annuity is about $3,580 a month. I’ve worked for 15 years in the private sector. I now get about $800 a month from Social Security, and my wife gets about $700/month before deducting for Medicare. Would either of us qualify for spousal benefits from Social Security? A. Because you are receiving an annuity from CSRS, a retirement system where you didn’t pay Social Security taxes, any Social Security spousal benefit to which you’d be entitled would be affected by the government pension offset. The GPO would reduce that benefit…
Q. I am a 71-year-old single female, and I chose Blue Cross/Blue Shield as my primary and Medicare Part A as my secondary when I turned 65. I retired from federal service in January 2005, but since then, my Blue Cross premium has risen to $185 a month. My research tells me that even though I have to pay a 10 percent penalty per year (seven years) on the monthly premium, it is still less expensive monthly to change to Medicare as my primary and my federal medical insurance as secondary. What is the difference in coverage as I have…
Q. I am a federal government retiree who turned 65 in March. I have Kaiser of Southern Cal health benefits. Do I have to enroll in Medicare? Should I enroll in Medicare? If I enroll in Medicare, will it change coverage for my wife? How would I enroll? A. Medicare is a benefit that is personal to you. While you don’t have to enroll in Medicare Part A, it wouldn’t make any sense not to. You paid for that coverage through payroll deductions, and there aren’t any premiums to pay. Medicare Part B is different. You would have to pay…
Q. I retired on Jan. 2 from CSRS. I am not eligible for Social Security. Am I eligible for Medicare Part A? A. Yes, you will be eligible for Medicare Part A at age 65 because you had 1.45 percent deducted from your salary every pay period to pay for that benefit.