Originally Posted by
chewybrian
Not surprisingly, I don't know that. I assume it makes sense to bet long so you don't end up in the poor house. But, I have a sense that the medicare question is tied up with all this. Can I lock in a certain payment for a supplemental policy and figure out my real health care cost, or should you just keep on banking all you can in case you end up in a nursing home or something?
On the flip side, of course, there is something to be said for enjoying life while you can still do it.
You are required to register on the Medicare site when you turn 65, or a couple months before. You do not get drug coverage for free and if you don't have drug coverage you will pay a monthly fine if you do get it later. You can get a Medicare Advantage plan from an insurance company which covers drugs and co-pays, it's a good deal and there are a lot to choose from.
When I retired I was 65 but my "full retirement" age was 66. I worked part of that year and made $23k. At the time the penalty was they would subtract $1 from my payment for every $2 I made over $17k. This goes away in the year of my "full retirement" age, which was the next year. I didn't work that year anyway.
The other consideration is if you collect SS while working you may have to pay taxes on it. I think this also goes away at some point.