Got SSDI approved BUT NOT Eligible for M/Care until 24 monhs!!

yarnball

We got my brother's SSDI approved.  He's 62.  YAY!  BUT, I was so focused on getting that taken care of, I didn't research enough I guess as I just found out he is not eligible for Medicare until he has had SSDI for 24 months!!  He currently has COBRA from former employer who let him go in Dec 2021.  Cobra is $665.00 per month!!!  Who can afford that??  I (wrongly) assumed he would get Medicare.

What have others of you done about health insurance? 

M1

Yarnball, look at healthcare.gov to see what he might be eligible for, there may be something less expensive or with a subsidy since he will be on ssdi. Those last few years before Medicare are killer, I had to pay $1200/month. So $665 doesn't sound terrible but it depends on his income of course.

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PlentyQuiet

DH left his job December 31, 2020. November 2021 he was diagnosed with EOAD. December 2021 he was approved for SSDI. He was found to be disabled as of January 1 2021, so with the waiting period he will be eligible for Medicare next June or July. 

Look at when he was considered to be disabled, you may be several months down the road towards the 24 months. 

Quilting brings calm

I do not know what state he is in.  I do not know what the affordable  care act insurance web site is.  However I do know that there are subsidies available for it and that there were additional subsidies due last year and this year. My sister is on private disability -not yet qualified for social security disability.   Her cost  for her Cobra insurance was going to increase after she has been off work for a certain period of time to something g like $2000 a month.  The affordable care insurance  was $1400. The special subsidy brought it down to around $700.   

I also know other people who got really cheap affordable care insurance   It depends on the state you live in and how much coverage you want.  Your brother may need good coverage and it may be cheaper to stay on the cobra as long as possible due to the strength of the coverage and the deductibles before the insurance kicks in. 

Truthfully we don’t know what will happen with the minimum Medicare age in the next couple years.  Politicians have plans you know.  

yarnball

Thank you all of commenting.  For now, we will keep paying the Cobra amount.  I just seems crazy to me that he can get on disability but there is no corresponding health insurance help.  It's another huge problem in the midst of all the other problems. 

Take one day at a time.  But, some days I can't breathe.

Stuck in the middle

The two year wait was a compromise between the congressmen who wanted to award Medicare to all SSDI beneficiaries and those who wanted to award it to none.  That was back in the 1970s when the parties still made deals to get things done.

Iris L.

This is for others in the diagnostic phase who are still working.  My suggestion is to consider taking short medical leave of absence (sick leave) pending completion of the diagnostic testing process.  This is because sick leave usually only requires a doctor's note.  After the testing is completed, if the diagnosis tends towards dementia or another permanent condition, then documentation can be presented for long term disability coverage.  This can take some time.  Taking leave in this way may protect the employment status.  Otherwise, benefits may be lost.  Discuss with HR and/or an employment attorney for the legalities regarding the PWD's own state and situation.

You may also discretely look at a copy of a recent annual employee review to see if there have been warnings of poor performance.  That's not a good sign.

Iris