An agent from Solon, OH asks…
Q: When can an active, full-time employee on a group plan voluntarily drop the group plan and enroll in a Medicare supplement plan?
A: Full-time employees have the same rights to Medicare (including Med supp) access as retirees, so an employee's eligibility would be the same as a regular beneficiary. However, there are some important decisions that a currently employed individual will need to make that a retired or non-working beneficiary will not have to consider. Do they want to drop their voluntary coverage all together and use just Medicare? Or do they want to stay on their group plan and use Medicare to cover the rest? (In most cases, the group plan will pay a claim before Medicare will in the case that a beneficiary is dually enrolled.) To help determine which is the best option for your clients, you can visit www.medicare.gov and select "Compare Medicare Prescription Drug Plans" and "Compare Health Plans and Medigap Policies in Your Area." For more information about who pays the claims for a dual-enrollee, and about the process of notifying CMS of your client's current coverage, read the Guide to Who Pays First offered by CMS.
