Hi Larry,
My husband collects his early retirement social security as of his age of 62 he reached this past October 2017. We live in Germany and have a German private medical insurance. In the Social Security booklet sent to us, it is stated
.......Because Medicare benefits are available only in the United States, it may not be to your advantage to sign up and pay the premium for medical insurance if you will be out of the United States for a long period of time. However, if you do not sign up, be aware that if you later do so, you will pay a 10 percent higher premium for each 12 month period you could have been enrolled, but were not.....
Does this mean that 3 months prior to him reaching age of 65, we should sign up for medicare even though we may still be in Germany, because if we do not, then we have to pay 10 percent higher premium for each 12 month period we are not signed up, being located in Germany, where we cannot use it? So, if we return to the States, depending on when that is, we could be paying let us say a 30% premium hike if we would return to the States when he is 68 years old ...10% hike for each year since obtaining age 65, for example. Is this right? Should we sign up then at age 65 even though we may still be in Germany? Very confusing! I do have your book.

Hi,

I can't advise you whether or not to sign up for Medicare, but it sounds like you understand the rules correctly. I should point out, however, that the 10% per year premium surcharge only apples to Part B of Medicare, which essentially covers outpatient care. Since your husband receives Social Security benefits, Part A Medicare coverage (Inpatient Hospital) would be premium-free regardless of when he enrolls.

Your decision about applying for Medicare will probably come down to the likelihood of your returning to the U.S., and the length of time that you are likely to stay. One other consideration is that you can only enroll in Part B of Medicare during certain enrollment periods, and if you don't sign up during your initial enrollment period at age 65 you will likely only be able to enroll during general enrollment periods (GEP) that start annually on January 1st and end March 31st. And, if you enroll during a GEP your Part B coverage does not start until July 1st of your year of enrollment. Therefore, you will probably need to plan well in advance if you decide not to enroll in Part B but want to do so later due to a return to the U.S.

Best, Jerry