Do people who get social security disability benefits get medicare?

Recipients of Social Security disability receive Medicare automatically two years after their initial disability determination. One way of explaining this mandatory waiting period is that when Congress extended Medicare coverage to people with permanent disabilities in 1972, it also established the waiting period.

The reason for the waiting period may have been to hold down costs, avoid overlapping with private insurance and to make sure Medicare would be available only to people whose disabilities were severe and long-lasting. The primary reason that the waiting period will probably remain in effect is that according to the Congressional Budget Office, eliminating the wait would cost the federal government $6.8 billion the first year and $110 billion through 2019.

For more information regarding Social Security disability and Medicare, you might consider speaking with an attorney who specializes in Social Security law.

Talk to a Social Security Disability Lawyer before filing an application, or if your application has been denied.