When you’re first eligible for Medicare, you have a seven-month initial enrollment period to sign up for Part A and/or B. That seven-month enrollment period begins three months before your birthday month, and ends three months after your birthday month.

This is the third part in a four-part series on how to sign up for Medicare for people turning 65.

Step 3 — Sign up for Medicare!

checkbox    Sign up for Medicare, beginning 3 months before your 65th birthday

How? If you have not received your automatic enrollment information in the mail, it’s time to sign up! Fill out the form online by going to medicare.gov and clicking on “Apply for Medicare” on the home page. Or call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213, TTY 1-800-325-0778. You can also visit your local Social Security office.

Note: The Social Security agency handles Medicare enrollments. Follow this link to get a checklist to expedite the enrollment process: http://www.ssa.gov/hlp/isba/10/isba-checklist.pdf

Check back tomorrow for step 4!
Steps to Medicare Part 3: It’s time!