How to sign up for Medicare

Ethan Mitchell4 said:I’m honestly just wondering what happens now that everything—every single registration and cancellation—is being handled online. What becomes of all those workers who used to sit behind the counters at Social Security and Medicare & Medicaid Services?

Are we just going to keep paying them to sit there and count the days, just like before? While we end up doing their jobs for them?

Let someone else worry about that—they're getting paid either way, hehehe🙂

Ethan Mitchell4 said:I’m honestly just wondering what happens now that everything—every single registration and cancellation—is being handled online. What becomes of all those workers who used to sit behind the counters at Social Security and Medicare & Medicaid Services?

Are we just going to keep paying them to sit there and count the days, just like before? While we end up doing their jobs for them?

It's likely the same thing that happened to the IRS and Customs agents...☕

I tried logging into my MyMedicare portal today. As easy as it is to check my Social Security benefits online, they’ve made this whole process unnecessarily complicated. 🙂
Honestly, I can't stand it. ☕

Ethan Mitchell4 said:I tried logging into my MyMedicare portal today. As easy as it is to check my Social Security benefits online, they’ve made this whole process unnecessarily complicated. 🙂
Honestly, I can't stand it. ☕

They're basically just waiting for a revolution to hit. 🙂

Does anyone know where I can find my card number for the MyMedicare application?

That would be the number ending in .1

It’s just ssn.number.1

I’m actually struggling with this digitally signed email thing. I went ahead and set up a digital signature in Outlook to sign off on stuff, but for some reason, they can't even see the attachment—you know, that image of my scanned application. Anyone have a clue what's going on?

amberbadger17 said:That would be the number ending in .1

It’s just ssn.number.1

I’m actually struggling with this digitally signed email thing. I went ahead and set up a digital signature in Outlook to sign off on stuff, but for some reason, they can't even see the attachment—you know, that image of my scanned application. Anyone have a clue what's going on?

Honestly, I just gave up and dropped the paperwork off in person at the local branch. I can't make heads or tails of these digitally signed email things...

James Parker6 said:Does anyone know where I can find my card number for the MyMedicare application?

I managed to track it down this way:

Nicole Lee6 said:Well, I gave them a call, and they told me to enter the serial number from my Bank of America card, but that’s clearly not the right one; it doesn't end in .1 like it should.

So, I started digging around. In case anyone else is stuck in this same loop, you can actually run that number through the IRS application—the one used to decrypt the initial PIN ())—and you can locate the certificate number in there...

Alternatively, just give the department at Chase that handles certificate issuance a call. They should be able to provide that information directly, regardless of where you originally picked up the certificate, since they all manage the same centralized system.

Ethan Mitchell4 said:I’m honestly just wondering what happens now that everything—every single registration and cancellation—is being handled online. What becomes of all those workers who used to sit behind the counters at Social Security and Medicare & Medicaid Services?

Are we just going to keep paying them to sit there and count the days, just like before? While we end up doing their jobs for them?

They'll probably just print out those same forms and stack them in folders, I bet.

Nicole Lee6 said:Honestly, I just gave up and dropped the paperwork off in person at the local branch. I can't make heads or tails of these digitally signed email things...

Well, I spent days messing around just to finally get my digital ID set up. I am absolutely not stepping foot in an office anytime soon—not happening. That’s why they even bother with email; so people don't have to waste their time driving all over town or taking a day off work just for some stupid piece of paper. Plus, who knows, I might actually need digital mail again down the road.

Honestly, dealing with Social Security was way more fun—I just logged into the app and boom... done. I was totally impressed. But Medicare & Medicaid Services? They are seriously getting on my last nerve.😉

I’m trying to navigate the online retirement application system, and I’ve hit a snag. My contract lists my role as "assistant construction laborer," but that specific title isn't appearing in the official job classification list. Will my application be rejected if I just enter the title exactly as it appears on the contract? Or am I forced to change the contract to match one of their pre-approved categories? Is it even legal for me to cross out the existing title on the paper and write in a different one 😁, just so I don't have to hunt down workers at a job site to sign a whole new agreement? We've filed applications for workers with similar descriptions before, but I honestly can't remember how the lady at the Social Security Administration handled it back then...

Sandra Wells5 said:I’m trying to navigate the online retirement application system, and I’ve hit a snag. My contract lists my role as "assistant construction laborer," but that specific title isn't appearing in the official job classification list. Will my application be rejected if I just enter the title exactly as it appears on the contract? Or am I forced to change the contract to match one of their pre-approved categories? Is it even legal for me to cross out the existing title on the paper and write in a different one 😁, just so I don't have to hunt down workers at a job site to sign a whole new agreement? We've filed applications for workers with similar descriptions before, but I honestly can't remember how the lady at the Social Security Administration handled it back then...

Just pick the closest available option from the list—if "general laborer" is there, go with that—and then you can type the precise title from the employment contract into the comments or additional info field below.

Thanks account12345,

I’m honestly dying to know where they even dug up that job classification. They actually listed "Assistant to the State Auditor" as an option—as if there are 50,000 Americans out there working in a role like that (not to mention those other niche Congressional positions)

Just wanted to drop this here for the group;
If you’re having trouble uploading files to MyMedicare, one potential culprit might be the filename itself.
If the file name includes special characters like accented letters—specifically things like Ž or Š—the system just won't upload it. It won't give you an error message or anything—nothing happens at all. Just dead silence.
Hopefully, this saves a few of you from a massive headache. 😉

On another note—I submitted three different filings for the exact same client today, spaced about five minutes apart. One was processed by tomorrow morning, the second took two days, and I'm still waiting on the third.
Then, fast forward to today: I send over three more for a different client, and one gets processed instantly. Honestly, if someone could explain how this logic works, I'd love to know. 😕

Raymond Martinez10 said:Just wanted to drop this here for the group;
If you’re having trouble uploading files to MyMedicare, one potential culprit might be the filename itself.
If the file name includes special characters like accented letters—specifically things like Ž or Š—the system just won't upload it. It won't give you an error message or anything—nothing happens at all. Just dead silence.
Hopefully, this saves a few of you from a massive headache. 😉

On another note—I submitted three different filings for the exact same client today, spaced about five minutes apart. One was processed by tomorrow morning, the second took two days, and I'm still waiting on the third.
Then, fast forward to today: I send over three more for a different client, and one gets processed instantly. Honestly, if someone could explain how this logic works, I'd love to know. 😕

Yeah, exactly. The entire file path leading up to the document you're uploading can't have any special characters in it—none at all. 🙂

I submitted three separate filings for the exact same client on the same day—just five minutes apart—and the processing times have been all over the place. One went through the next day, the second took two days, and I’m still sitting here waiting on the third. Just great.
So, I just sent over three more files for another client today—and wouldn't you know it—one gets kicked back processed immediately. I mean, seriously? I guess I'd love to actually understand how this whole system works. 😕

They’re spreading them across the entire country—or maybe the admins are just pulling them manually. I guess. 🤷You’ll see it once you check the names of the people who processed the claims—and even by looking at the regional office numbers—that they were sent to all over the place. Some folks move faster, I guess, while others just drag their feet. 🤷

What is their typical turnaround time for processing requests? For instance, an employment separation?
If an employee is looking to transition immediately to a new role, waiting several days could pose a significant issue....

amberdrifter14 said:What is their typical turnaround time for processing requests? For instance, an employment separation?
If an employee is looking to transition immediately to a new role, waiting several days could pose a significant issue....

In my experience, Social Security stuff usually clears in about half an hour.
I think I saw somewhere on their website that a new employer can just register you even if your previous one hasn't officially processed your exit yet. It used to be a headache, but apparently, they've streamlined it now.
Or was I thinking of how Medicare works?

Alternatively, you could just have them process the termination a couple of days early, then on the actual last day, you just print out the confirmation paperwork.

I need some help here... what should I actually put in a power of attorney? I'm dealing with four different companies, but everything is going through one main entity, so I need to draft a POA and I'm honestly not sure how to word it.

thanks

Ethan Mitchell4 said:In my experience, Social Security stuff usually clears in about half an hour.
I think I saw somewhere on their website that a new employer can just register you even if your previous one hasn't officially processed your exit yet. It used to be a headache, but apparently, they've streamlined it now.
Or was I thinking of how Medicare works?

Alternatively, you could just have them process the termination a couple of days early, then on the actual last day, you just print out the confirmation paperwork.

Actually, no—for Medicare, you first have to send an email requesting to de-register the employee (assuming they were covered under Medicare), then they’ll get back to you confirming the de-registration, and *then* you can go ahead and register them elsewhere.
As for Social Security, I honestly don't know—up until now, I've only ever hired people who were already unemployed. 😉

Raymond Martinez10 said:Actually, no—for Medicare, you first have to send an email requesting to de-register the employee (assuming they were covered under Medicare), then they’ll get back to you confirming the de-registration, and *then* you can go ahead and register them elsewhere.
As for Social Security, I honestly don't know—up until now, I've only ever hired people who were already unemployed. 😉

Regarding Social Security, it used to be...

Can an employer register a worker if their previous boss failed to de-register them?

The agency's system tracks all facts regarding an individual's employment status, including when insurance coverage begins and ends. If a previous employer failed to fulfill their obligation to de-register a worker who has since started a new job, that doesn't stop the new employer from being able to file the necessary paperwork to establish insurance for that employee. In fact,
the previous employer still carries the legal responsibility to report the termination of coverage, which the agency will process once that filing is received. The agency won't block a new enrollment just because the former employer hasn't cleared the worker out of the system yet.