Health Insurance

[RevRon]

We are a Canadian couple 69 and 71 years old. My wife is a U.S. citizen. We are moving to the stage of spending 6 months of the year in Florida with our RV at our daughters home. We are having a very hard time finding any kind of affordable health insurance. My wife is applying for Medicare but not sure how that will work. All advice is very welcome

[Bigceasar]

Medicare coverage for your wife will depend on her US work history. She will need to have a minimum of 40 qualifying quarters to be eligible for full Medicare part A benefits. Any less than 40 quarters she would need to pay premiums if she is eligible at all.
Most Canadian citizens staying for an extended time in the US buy a supplemental plan from Canadian insurers. At your ages, you are very high risks of having expensive medical needs so premiums for any plan will likely be expensive. I seriously doubt there are any high quality low cost options.

[RevRon]

We are going to check with a tax lawyer - she worked in the U.S. and has been paying taxes for about eight years so we are wondering where she stands

[outbackmac]

What is your work history? i hear your wife worked and paid social security, she should be covered with that amount of time. Are you a us citizen? not sure how that works if you are not. But i do know this, if you did not pay into social security but spouse did, you are still eligiable even if you did not pay in, as long as spouse is 62 years of age. like i said if you are not a citizen may be a issue

[sbleiweiss]

Originally Posted by RevRon

We are going to check with a tax lawyer - she worked in the U.S. and has been paying taxes for about eight years so we are wondering where she stands

You may want to check with Avi Sachs in Skokie, IL. He is a former SSA lawyer and now in private practice. He was very good and helpful when we were trying to figure out how/when to take our social security. I bet he knows about Medicare too, but am not sure about that part.

[Blawless]

If you haven't checked the Canadian Snowbirds Association might be a good place for researching insurance needs and costs. They endorse Medipac Insurance. Check it out on line. If you don't have major health issues the cost is reasonable for the age group.

[Bigceasar]

Originally Posted by RevRon

We are going to check with a tax lawyer - she worked in the U.S. and has been paying taxes for about eight years so we are wondering where she stands

On the face of it she is a couple of years short at a minimum. It’s more complicated that that, however. An absurd example would be you don’t earn 40 quarters of credit working part time one day each quarter.
And paying taxes does not automatically equate to social security and Medicare credits. Requesting her records from the social security administration would be a good first step and necessary to have if you seek professional advice. Those records can usually be obtained in line, but some circumstances will require an in person visit to a social security office.

[RevRon]

Originally Posted by sbleiweiss

You may want to check with Avi Sachs in Skokie, IL. He is a former SSA lawyer and now in private practice. He was very good and helpful when we were trying to figure out how/when to take our social security. I bet he knows about Medicare too, but am not sure about that part.

I spoke to this gentleman for about 15 or 20 minutes. He was incredibly accommodating and helped me out a great deal. Prices may be a little high but lawyers don’t do a lot for free although he gave me about $150 worth of time.

[Old-Biscuit]

Originally Posted by RevRon

I spoke to this gentleman for about 15 or 20 minutes. He was incredibly accommodating and helped me out a great deal. Prices may be a little high but lawyers don’t do a lot for free although he gave me about $150 worth of time.

Could you post his advice/recommendation etc so others following can be enlightened?

[RevRon]

Originally Posted by RevRon

I spoke to this gentleman for about 15 or 20 minutes. He was incredibly accommodating and helped me out a great deal. Prices may be a little high but lawyers don’t do a lot for free although he gave me about $150 worth of time.

I couldn’t keep up with notes to what he was saying but he sent an email to clarify who to speak to etc. excellent. I will attach it - none of it is proprietary - email follows

It was nice speaking with you. Your wife should contact the local field office for he Soc Sec Admn in Bellingham, WA to determine how many quarters of coverage she currently has. She nees 40 to be insured for Medicare and she needs at least 30 quarters of coverage in order to be able to buy premimum-based Medicare. If she has less than 30, I do not believe that she can buy coverage, but I would have to confirm that.


To reach the web page we discussed go to https://www.ssa.gov/foreign/britishcol.htm.

See the following web page for general information for Canadian residents:

https://ca.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen...cial-security/

That page directs Canadian residents to this page to learn which office to contact to learn which Soc Sec office provides services, based on province of residence:

https://www.ssa.gov/foreign/canada.htm

However, the special webpage for British Columbia residents is what I listed at the top.

If you have additional questions, we will need to set up a time for a consultation.

All the best,


Avi

Avram L. Sacks
Attorney at Law
3809 Enfield Avenue
Skokie, IL 60076
avram@asackslaw.com
773-206-0276

[Persistent]

Originally Posted by RevRon

We are going to check with a tax lawyer - she worked in the U.S. and has been paying taxes for about eight years so we are wondering where she stands

If you have a good tax lawyer that may be helpful. I would not hire a lawyer to do that job. The medicare people are the best at making a definitive determination. There are independent insurance agents who are also good at coming up with good solutions.

[Old-Biscuit]

THANKS for posting the info from that lawyer

[Country Road]

If you were an American citizen wanting to go live in Canada for 6 months, what problem would we face with our Medicare and supplemental policy? I understand every company may be different but Medicare won’t.

To the OP, why doesn’t your health care you have now cover you while you’re here, that is assuming you have health insurance?

[sbleiweiss]

I think Medicare only covers in the US. If Medicare doesn't cover, neither does Supplement.