Medicare premium reimbursement delay after filing for Social Security survivor benefits - how long?

same thing happened 2 me. took 4 months to get the back pay for Medicare. just wait they'll send u a separate payment for it. the system is slow but it works eventually

The Medicare premium reimbursement is typically processed separately from your regular benefit payments. In my experience working with many clients, it usually takes 2-3 months for SSA to process and issue the Medicare premium refund. This happens because different departments handle different aspects of your benefits. The fact that your award letter acknowledges the Medicare premiums starting from July 2022 is actually a good sign - it means they've recognized the period for which you're owed a refund. Just make sure you keep documentation of all the Medicare payments you made directly (bank statements, etc.) in case there's any discrepancy in their calculations.

I WENT THROUGH THIS NIGHTMARE LAST YEAR!!!! Filed for spousal benefits while my husband was still working (I never worked enough for my own SS) and had been paying Medicare for 2 years. SSA took SEVEN MONTHS to reimburse me and I had to call them 12 TIMES!!! Every person told me something different. One said 2 weeks, another said 6 months. The system is COMPLETELY BROKEN!!!!

I had a similar situation with Medicare premiums being reimbursed after starting survivor benefits. In my case, it took about 6 weeks to receive the reimbursement, which came as a separate direct deposit. One thing that might help - I was having trouble reaching someone at SSA to check on the status (kept getting disconnected after 2+ hour waits), but I found this service called Claimyr that got me through to an agent in about 20 minutes. Their website is claimyr.com and they have a video showing how it works: https://youtu.be/Z-BRbJw3puU The agent I spoke with was able to verify that my Medicare premium reimbursement was being processed and gave me an estimated date. Definitely helped ease my mind rather than just waiting and wondering.

my brother had this happen and they never paid him back! he had to file some special form i think it was called "request for medicare premium reimbursement" or something. dont just wait like others are saying!! call them asap

Medicare premium reimbursements are handled through what's called the Third Party Premium Refund Process at SSA. This is a separate process from your regular benefit payments, which explains why your award letter didn't mention the reimbursement specifically. The typical timeframe is 60-90 days, though it can sometimes take longer. The reimbursement will come as a separate payment, either by direct deposit (if you have that set up) or check. One important thing to verify: make sure SSA has the correct dates for when you started paying Medicare premiums yourself. Your award letter mentioned May 2022, but you said you turned 65 in June 2022. This discrepancy could cause issues with your reimbursement amount. I'd recommend calling SSA to verify they have the correct start date for your Medicare coverage.

I'm in a similar boat waiting for Medicare reimbursement after starting widow's benefits last month. Has anyone received their reimbursement via direct deposit, or do they send a paper check? I'm worried about missing a check in the mail since I've had mail delivery problems in my neighborhood.

Update: I finally got through to SSA this morning! The representative confirmed they have the correct start date for my Medicare (August 2022) despite what the letter said. She told me the Medicare reimbursement should come within 6-8 weeks as a separate payment. She also noted that I'll see the reimbursement pending in my MySocialSecurity account before it hits my bank account. Thanks everyone for your help and sharing your experiences. I'll update again when I receive the payment!

Great to see you got through to SSA and got some clarity! That MySocialSecurity account tip is really valuable - I didn't know the reimbursement would show up there first. For others still waiting, it might be worth setting up online access if you haven't already. Having a way to track these things online beats calling and waiting on hold for hours. LunarEclipse, definitely keep us posted when you get that reimbursement - it'll help give the rest of us a realistic timeline to expect.