There’s also a Medicare Part D late enrollment penalty. According to Medicare, the late enrollment penalty is an amount that’s permanently added to your Medicare drug coverage (Medicare Part D) premium. You may owe a late enrollment penalty if, at any time after your Initial Enrollment Period is over, there’s a period of sixty-three or more days in a row when you don’t have Medicare drug coverage or other creditable prescription drug coverage. You’ll generally have to pay the penalty for as long as you have Medicare drug coverage. If you don’t sign up for Medicare Part D when you’re first allowed to do so, either through a Medicare Part D Prescription Drug plan or through a Medicare Advantage plan, you’ll get financially penalized if you ever do decide to sign up. It’s a good idea to sign up as soon as you’re eligible, even though you may not use it. In fact, it’s better than a really good idea. If you don’t, that late enrollment financial penalty (higher premiums) will haunt you for the rest of your life. If you don’t take any prescriptions, that’s wonderful. Odds are, however, that at some point in your life, you will. Just get the cheapest Medicare Part D plan when you’re eligible, so you are not haunted by the penalty for late enrollment. You can change your Part D Prescription Drug Plan and Medicare Advantage plan once per year under normal circumstances during the AEP. This means that even if you get the cheapest one initially because you’re not taking any prescriptions, you can change once a year if your status changes.
Don’t worry, just like Medicare Part B, you won’t be penalized for not buying it if you’re working past age sixty-five and have prescription drug coverage through your employer or elsewhere, but you’ll have to prove it was “creditable” coverage to Medicare (as good as or better than Medicare Part D) when you do eventually sign up.
So, you’ll want to sign up for Medicare Part B and get Medicare Part D coverage, either through a stand-alone Medicare Part D Prescription Drug Plan or a MAPD plan when you turn sixty-five or retire.