There's a reason many older Americans wait until age 65 to retire. Age 65 is when Medicare eligibility typically begins.
By contrast, seniors are allowed to sign up for Social Security as early as age 62. And many older Americans do, in fact, file for benefits as early as possible. But there are those who continue working until age 65 -- and therefore hold off on Social Security -- because they need health coverage through their jobs until Medicare kicks in.
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You should know that your initial window to enroll in Medicare starts three months before the month of your 65th birthday and ends three months after that month. And if you're late enrolling in Medicare, you could face steep lifelong surcharges on your Part B premiums.
That's why it often pays to enroll in Medicare at or around age 65. But if these factors apply to you, you may not want to sign up for Medicare in 2026 -- even if you'll be turning 65.
1. You're still working and have great employer health coverage
Although Medicare may, depending on your group coverage through your job, be less expensive for you in terms of premiums, your employer's plan may be more comprehensive. So all told, your costs might be lower on your employer's plan.
Medicare, for example, won't cover dental services, eye exams, and hearing aids. If your employer health plan is fantastic and offers great benefits, you may find that you lose out by enrolling in Medicare.
2. You have health insurance that costs you less than Medicare
It's not a given that Medicare premiums will cost less than employer premiums. Some employers fully subsidize their employees' insurance costs so you're not paying a dime toward your monthly premiums.
And if your employer plan has a low deductible for in-network services, or none at all, that could easily make the case to skip Medicare enrollment for now and stick with your workplace plan instead.
3. You want to continue funding your HSA
Although Medicare Part B charges enrollees a premium for coverage, most seniors do not pay a premium for Part A, which covers hospital care. As such, it could make sense to enroll in Part A only once you turn 65, even if you continue to receive health coverage through your workplace plan.
In that situation, what Part A can do is serve as secondary insurance for hospital care. In some cases, Part A might cover services your primary insurance does not.
But you should know that once you enroll in Medicare in any shape or form, including signing up for Part A only, you're barred from contributing to a health savings account (HSA). HSA contributions can play a crucial role in shielding some of your income from taxes. So you may not want to give up that option.
And if that's the case, you may want to hold off on Medicare completely in the new year -- including Part A.
Waiting can sometimes pay off
Although there can be big penalties for waiting too long to sign up for Medicare, you're usually eligible for a special enrollment period if you have qualifying group health coverage at the time of your initial seven-month enrollment window. And if any of the situations above apply to you, and you're eligible for that special enrollment period, you may not want to sign up for Medicare in 2026 even if the option becomes available.
You may find that waiting on Medicare saves you money in the long run. It might also help you maximize a big tax benefit you don’t want to give up just yet.
