Within 3 months after your new coverage starts. Although Medicare Advantage plan coverage changes each year, some Medicare plans are able to
"give back" a portion of your Medicare Part B premium (
$148.50 in 2021) back to you as part of your monthly Social Security check. For example, the
2021 WellCare Dividend (HMO) (available to residents of Brevard county, Florida) provided a $95 rebate or dividend toward your Medicare Part B premium (or a Part B "give back").
However, due to the application processing time needed when you first enroll
into a "dividend" or "give back" Medicare Advantage plan, it may take the Social Security
Administration up to 3-months before you see the Part B premium rebates
or refunds in your Social Security check (see below if you do not yet receive a SS benefit check) .
If there is a delay in your monthly rebate payment, you will see that
three-months (or whatever time has elapsed) of Medicare Part B premiums
will be included at one time in your Social Security check. For
example, let's say you enrolled in the
2021 WellCare Dividend (HMO)
(this 2021 plan has a $95 Part B give-back) - and after paying your Medicare Part B premiums in January, February,
and March, you would see a total of $285 (or 3 * $95) returned in your
Social Security check.
Then, after the first Medicare Part B premium rebate payment, your
monthly Social Security checks should show a regular increase
reflecting the monthly Medicare Part B premium give back.
Please read
the Medicare plan coverage details carefully each year as some plans found in the same area (or county) may not rebate any portion of the Medicare Part B premiums year-to-year or rebate only a smaller portion of the monthly Medicare Part B premium. (You can look in your plan's Summary of Benefits, Evidence of Coverage, or Annual Notice of Change document - or call the Medicare Advantage plan for more information.)
Practical note: Please remember a "dividend" or "Part B give back" Medicare Advantage plans rebating back a portion of your Part B to you is only available in certain areas of the country.
Usually you will find $0 premium "Part B give back" plans in counties of the Unites States densely populated by seniors (or other Medicare beneficiaries). You may also find that the same-named Medicare Advantage plan in another county will rebate a higher Medicare Part B premium amount or offer a lower Part B premium rebate.
For example, if you enroll in the
2021 WellCare Dividend Prime (HMO) as a residents of Brevard County, Florida, you will receive a $95 rebate toward your 2021 Medicare Part B premium (or a Part B premium reduction of $95). However, if you live further north in St. Johns County, Florida, you will find the same named
2021 WellCare Dividend Prime (HMO), but the Part B "give back" or premium reduction is $90 instead of the $95 as found in Brevard County.
Question: How will I get my Part B rebate or "give back" if I do not collect Social Security benefits?
Your
Medicare Part B refund, give-back, or "Dividend" repayment depends on
how your Medicare Part B premium is paid: whether premiums are withheld
from your Social Security check or whether you pay Part B premiums
directly. As you may find something noted in your Medicare Advantage
plan literature such as:
"For 202[x], [Your Medicare
plan] will reduce your monthly Medicare Part B Premium by [$xx.00]. The
reduction is set up by Medicare and administered through the Social
Security Administration (SSA). Depending on how you pay your Medicare
Part B premium, your reduction may be credited to your Social Security
check or credited on your Medicare Part B premium statement. Reductions
may take several months to be issued; however, you will receive a full
credit."
So if you pay your Part B premium directly
(not by automatic Social Security check deduction), you will see that
your Part B premium statement has been updated with the rebate or "give
back" amount credited to what you owe.