Depending on your Medicare plan, you can choose one of the following ways to pay your monthly plan premiums, including:
- Automatic Social Security check deductions
Tip: This payment method is usually what we recommend to friends and family, your SS check gets smaller, but you can rest knowing that the payments are being made. Please note, in some cases your Medicare plan may not initially allow you this payment option (even when chosen on your enrollment application, however, if initially denied, you should be allowed to choose this option later in your Medicare plan year.
- Automatic deduction from your monthly Railroad Retirement Board check
You will notice that your Medicare plan documentation may state something such as: "If you qualify for this option, you can have your plan premium taken out of your monthly Railroad Retirement Board check. Contact the Railroad Retirement Board Agency at 1-877-772-5772 or our Customer Service for more information.
- Payment by check
Your Medicare plan documents may state: "You may decide to pay your premium directly to our plan with a check. Checks should be made payable to the plan, not to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and should not be sent to these agencies. You will receive a monthly invoice from [your Medicare plan] for your premiums. Payments should be mailed to arrive on the first of the month to: [address of your Medicare plan]" [emphasis added]
- Automatic bank payment
You will notice that your Medicare plan documentation will state something such as: "Instead of paying by check, you can have your premium automatically withdrawn from your bank account or charged directly to your credit card. Automatic deductions or charges will be made monthly, on or around the sixth of the month. If you want to pay your premiums by either of these methods, visit [Medicare plan website address], or call Customer Service [using the toll-free number found on your Member ID card]." [emphasis added]
- Credit card payment
- Coupon book payment (sending a monthly check along with a coupon)
Tip: This payment method can be a little risky if you occasionally forget to pay your bills. If you do not pay your monthly premiums, your plan can involuntarily disenroll you from your Medicare plan - and this means that you may be without prescription drug coverage for the remainder of the year - see related question below.
Your Medicare plan may need more than a few months to process your change of payment method and you are still responsible for making your monthly premium payments during that time. Most Medicare plans state that they will need up to three (3) months to process your premium payment change request.
For example, if you did not choose a payment method when you first enrolled in your Medicare Part D plan, your payment method will be your Medicare plan’s default payment method (such as using a monthly coupon book), so if you decide to change to automatic Social Security check deduction, you will need to keep sending monthly premium payments until your new method of payment becomes effective.
You can look in Chapter 1 of your Medicare plan's Evidence of Coverage document and in Section 7.1, you probably will see a statement that describes the process necessary to change your payment method, such as:
"If you decide to change the way you pay your premium, it can take up to 3 months for your new payment method to take effect. While we are processing your request for a new payment method, you are responsible for making sure that your plan premium is paid on time."
Related Questions:
What can I do if my Medicare Part D plan says that I am being disenrolled because I haven't paid my monthly premiums? on this site
I didn't pay my plan premiums and was disenrolled from my Medicare Part D plan. What is the "good cause" that I must show to be reinstated in my plan? on this site