Comments on: Why you can't get Social Security if you refuse Medicare http://seekerblog.com/2008/10/27/why-you-cant-get-social-security-if-you-refuse-medicare/ Seeking reliable, objective sources on economics and energy-policy issues Sat, 26 May 2012 07:02:25 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: Michelle http://seekerblog.com/2008/10/27/why-you-cant-get-social-security-if-you-refuse-medicare/#comment-907 Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:53:42 +0000 http://seekerblog.com/archives/20081027/why-you-cant-get-social-security-if-you-refuse-medicare/#comment-907 Here’s the thing that people don’t understand…I read tons of entries on other sites complaining about this issue because Part A is “free” – “so what’s the big deal it costs you nothing to be in Part A”. It’s only Part A that you have to be enrolled in to get SS. The problem is, it costs you no $, but that’s not the only way to measure costs. Docs must make a decision, either they take Medicare or they don’t, there are a few ways for them to work with the program, but if you opt out, you opt out. 33% of docs already don’t take it. If you don’t take medicare, you CANNOT accept cash or alternate payment from medicare patients. It’s illegal for docs to do this and they face fines if they do. And if they do accept medicare patients, they can only provide the services according to the acceptable fee schedule from medicare. So they can’t provide services to them not covered by medicare. It’s a different kind of a straight jacket…one which prevents you from getting the care you want as a patient if you have the ability to pay for it out of your own pocket.

]]> By: Quahog http://seekerblog.com/2008/10/27/why-you-cant-get-social-security-if-you-refuse-medicare/#comment-906 Wed, 17 Jun 2009 02:47:23 +0000 http://seekerblog.com/archives/20081027/why-you-cant-get-social-security-if-you-refuse-medicare/#comment-906 Interesting! Well, non of this is going to matter to me. Not only will I refuse medicare when hitting age 65 next year, but have no interest in Social Security retirement bennies either. Too many strings attached and it’s even taxed. Forgot about it! It’s a scam!

Seems like everybody that I know, at age 62 jumped onto the Social Security bandwagon. They were all bent out of shape when I refused to sign up. It was as if my non-participation was a threat of some kind. Some of these people actually became angry.

To each his own! For myself, I want nothing to do with the Federal Government at any level. File an income tax return each spring and that’s all there is.

Will happily work until I drop dead which in my case will be sooner than later.

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