Medicare provides health insurance to Americans 65 and older as well as to people with disabilities.
You may qualify for full Medicare benefits if you are 65 or older and:
- You are a U.S. citizen or a permanent legal resident who has lived in the United States for at least five years and
- You are receiving Social Security or railroad retirement benefits or have worked long enough to be eligible for those benefits but are not yet collecting them.
- You or your spouse is a government employee or retiree who has not paid into Social Security but has paid Medicare payroll taxes while working.
Younger than 65? You qualify for full Medicare benefits under age 65 if:
- You have been entitled to Social Security disability benefits for at least 24 months (that need not be consecutive); or
- You receive a disability pension from the Railroad Retirement Board and meet certain conditions; or
- You have Lou Gehrig’s disease, also known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which qualifies you immediately; or
- You have permanent kidney failure requiring regular dialysis or a kidney transplant — and you or your spouse has paid Social Security taxes for a specified period, depending on your age.
Other ways to get Medicare coverage: If you do not qualify on your own or through your spouse’s work record but are a U.S. citizen or have been a legal resident for at least five years, you can get full Medicare benefits at age 65 or older. You must buy into them by:
- Paying premiums for Part A, You pay no Part A premium of you have worked in the U.S. paying Medicare taxes for at least 40 quarters (10 years). If you have accrued fewer than 30 quarters, you pay the maximum premium — $499 in 2022. If you have 30 to 39 quarters, you pay less — $274 a month in 2022. If you continue working until you gain 40 quarters, you will no longer pay these premiums.
- Paying the same monthly premiums for Part B, which covers doctor visits and other outpatient services, as other enrollees pay. In 2022 the amount is $170.10 for individuals with a yearly income of $91,000 or less or those filing a joint tax return with $182,000 in income or less. Rates are higher for people with higher incomes.