Retiring at age 75 or 80
I want to work as long as I can because I enjoy my work. (I am a high school teacher.) Is there a disadvantage to me if I wait until age 75 or older to apply for social security or medicare?
Terry Says
You MUST apply for Social Security at age 70 –and it’s a good idea to wait until the year of your 70th birthday to apply, because your check will be a lot larger.
As for Medicare, you should apply for Part A when you reach age 65. That doesn’t cost you anything. But you can wait to sign up for Part B (which does have a costly premium) until you quit work — as long as you have good coverage at work or through your union. When you reach age 65, you should check with your employer or your union as to how they want you to handle all parts of Medicare. (Some smaller businesses no longer cover eligible employees for healthcare, and some use it as an offset to their own coverage) so it’s best to confirm.
And how lucky for you – -and your students — that you love what you’re doing!
