Social Security & Medicare Planning Flashcards

A married couple wants to maximize lifetime Social Security benefits. The higher earner should generally delay benefits to age 70 primarily to:

Answer: Maximize the survivor benefit for the lower-earning spouse

Delaying the higher earner's benefit to 70 maximizes the survivor benefit, since the surviving spouse receives the higher of the two benefits.

Which Medicare supplement (Medigap) plan covers the Part B deductible in addition to Part A costs for newly eligible enrollees after January 1, 2020?

Answer: Plan G

Plan G is the most comprehensive Medigap plan available to those newly eligible after January 1, 2020, as Plan F was discontinued for new enrollees; Plan G does not cover the Part B deductible.

A 62-year-old client earns $35,000 annually and claims Social Security early. In 2024, the earnings test exempt amount below which no benefit is withheld is approximately:

Answer: $21,240

In 2024, the annual earnings test threshold for those under full retirement age is approximately $21,240; $1 in benefits is withheld for every $2 earned above this amount.

Medicare Advantage (Part C) plans are required by law to cover at minimum:

Answer: All services covered under Original Medicare Parts A and B

Medicare Advantage plans must cover all services that Original Medicare (Parts A and B) covers, though they may use networks and prior authorization.

The Social Security 'file and suspend' strategy was largely eliminated for couples by the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 primarily because it allowed:

Answer: One spouse to suspend benefits while the other claimed spousal benefits on that record simultaneously

The old file-and-suspend loophole let a higher earner suspend benefits while a spouse collected a spousal benefit, but post-2016 rules require the worker to actually be receiving benefits for spousal claims to be paid.

A client's Medicare Part D plan has a coverage gap. In 2024, the client pays what percentage of the plan's cost for brand-name drugs while in the gap?

Answer: 25%

In 2024, beneficiaries pay 25% of the cost of brand-name drugs in the Medicare Part D coverage gap, with manufacturers covering 70% and the plan covering 5%.

Which Social Security benefit is NOT reduced if claimed before the worker's full retirement age?

Answer: Disabled widow's benefit claimed at age 50

Disabled widow(er)'s benefits claimed between ages 50–59 are not subject to the early claiming reduction that applies to retirement and non-disabled survivor benefits.