how to opt out of medicare

[bkk6060]

I just signed up and do not know why anyone would not sign up for all of it.

A and B and a good free Advantage plan including pres. drugs $144 a month.

That is very cheap insurance.

Good luck I guess if you plan on self insure in Thailand then don't complain about the costs. 

And, good luck with insurances and the "preexisting" clauses in their policies.

I do know guys that have had identified issues ( heart disease/pace maker, prostate cancer, renal issues} who came back to the states for proper treatment.  That's what I would do seems well worth less then $150 a month...

Edited December 24, 2019 by bkk6060

[lopburi3]

11 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

I just signed up and do not know why anyone would not sign up for all of it.

As I stated earlier some of us have much better insurance so there is no need for this payment for something we will never use.  Agree for those without such insurance it would not be wise to avoid the relatively low costs involved even it only as a backup plan (return to US for treatment).

[AAArdvark]

16 hours ago, flbkk said:

heard that if you receive SS overseas the companies know and cancel you

Do you mean if you send your SS money directly to Thailand or you register your address?  I do neither of these and my advantage plan has never been canceled.  Some companies might but why would they?  They get the money and never have to pay out while you are overseas.

For me Medicare is nearly free with my advantage plan.  The plan has $0 premium and my former employer reimburses the Medicare premiums up to $1080.00 per year.   I keep it in case someone tell me I have stage 3 cancer.  I go home and pay very little.

[ubonjoe]

51 minutes ago, bkk6060 said:

I just signed up and do not know why anyone would not sign up for all of it.

A and B and a good free Advantage plan including pres. drugs $144 a month.

That works out to about 51k baht a year for something I would probably never be able to use. Insurance can be found for less than that here.

That is why I did not get it about 5 years ago.

[Suradit69]

8 hours ago, ericthai said:

yes, that does matter. Since you are registered as being outside the USA you dont qualify for medicare so therefore nothing happened. 

I understand that, but they sent me a card and have asked several times if I wanted payments deducted from SS.

 

And, although I have used a foreign address they wouldn't know if I planned to return to the US. Being outside of the US doesn't disqualify you  from signing up for Medicare. You can't use it outside of the US, but I know of people who are signed up and plan to return to the US, if physically able,  for treatment of major medical problems using Medicare coverage.

[Pib]

 

FACT SHEET: Deciding Whether to Enroll in Medicare Part A and Part B When You Turn 65

https://www.cms.gov/Outreach-and-Education/Find-Your-Provider-Type/Employers-and-Unions/FS3-Enroll-in-Part-A-and-B.pdf

[ericthai]

14 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

You would not get a postage paid envelope here since it could not be used.

When I got mine here a few years ago it had my medicare card for part A and a form to sign up for part B.

It is different if you are using an address for here than when a using address in the states for the SSA.

Correct, the return envelope would only be in a USA kit. 

[ericthai]

13 hours ago, soisanuk said:

This is what happened to me - I sent the card back.  So was not enrolled.

 

At the time, I did some research. If I should return to USA and want to get Part B, there is an open period (I don't recall exactly when, but March seems to stick in my mind) - there is a 10% penalty for each year you were eligible, but did were not enrolled for Part B (as I read it, the premium will increase by 10% for each year).

It would be the general enrollment period from Jan 1st until March 31st.  Yes the penalty is 10% for each year not enrolled for example: 5 years is a 50% increase in the monthly payment. Plus if you didn’t enroll part D (Drugs) That’s another penalty.

[ericthai]

12 hours ago, bkk6060 said:

I just signed up and do not know why anyone would not sign up for all of it.

A and B and a good free Advantage plan including pres. drugs $144 a month.

That is very cheap insurance.

Good luck I guess if you plan on self insure in Thailand then don't complain about the costs. 

And, good luck with insurances and the "preexisting" clauses in their policies.

I do know guys that have had identified issues ( heart disease/pace maker, prostate cancer, renal issues} who came back to the states for proper treatment.  That's what I would do seems well worth less then $150 a month...

Did you get a Medicare supplement plan (medigap) policy or a Medicare advantage?  Typically an advantage plan is allot less than $150 a month, unless its a PPO.  I agree with you for the cost it is good to have.
 

Be careful to be illegible your are suppose to live in the plan area for at least 6 months out of the year. So don’t make it obvious you are living overseas full time (if that is the case).  Medicare started a new enrollment period this year. If you are on a Medicare advantage plan you can make one plan change between Jan 1 and March 31.  You might want to go to Medicare.gov and review plans available in your area. Plans change every year so it’s good to review things yearly. 

[ericthai]

12 hours ago, AAArdvark said:

Do you mean if you send your SS money directly to Thailand or you register your address?  I do neither of these and my advantage plan has never been canceled.  Some companies might but why would they?  They get the money and never have to pay out while you are overseas.

For me Medicare is nearly free with my advantage plan.  The plan has $0 premium and my former employer reimburses the Medicare premiums up to $1080.00 per year.   I keep it in case someone tell me I have stage 3 cancer.  I go home and pay very little.

Good move, I really like the advantage plans and they just keep getting better. Don’t forget you’re max out of pocket will protect you on something major like cancer. It’s good to look at co-pays but always keep an eye on max out pocket, that will save you on chemo payments.   Don’t advertise to your plan you live outside the USA for more than 6 months.