One of the pivotal points in the life of a United States retiree is the age at which he or she decides to apply for retirement. This decision not only directly affects the monthly check we get from month to month, but also causes other elements outside of Social Security to change a bit.
One of those elements is the age at which Medicare can be started. Despite the fact that from the age of 62 we can have our retirement, as long as we meet the requirements, until the age of 65 we do not have Medicare. This means, therefore, that if we start collecting Social Security retirement at age 62, we will have to wait until age 65 to be able to combine it with Medicare.
Therefore, this can be a huge change in retirement planning for many United States seniors. Because a lot of retirees think they can apply for both at the same time. But in order to do this combination, it is mandatory to wait until age 65 before applying for Social Security.
In any case, it is important to keep in mind that Medicare does not cover all possible medical expenses. We will have to spend part of our Social Security check in order to have all the services available.
Medicare does not cover these medical expenses
Within all the expenses covered by Medicare there is a large amount. It also depends on whether we have Medicare Part B Premium or not. But if we only have Medicare Part A and Part B without premium, we will have a more limited variety of resources.
Watch out for these expenses, as Medicare will not cover them and you will have to pay part of your Social Security when you use them.
- Routine vision care. Any service related to vision is not covered by Medicare. If we want a new pair of glasses or if we are seeking an eye exam, we will have to pay out of pocket.
- Dental appointments. Dental services are not within Medicare services. Therefore, if we want to have a cleaning, a tooth extraction or any other similar service we will have to pay for it out of pocket.
- Medical expenses outside the United States. If you need medical care outside the USA, you will need private insurance to cover the expenses. Medicare does not have a service that provides medical care outside the United States.
There are more expenses that Medicare does not routinely cover, but these three are very important because they are so common for many retirees. Therefore, watch out when applying for these services, as they can add expense to your day-to-day life.