Enroll in Medicare. In order to enroll in the Emeriti Health Insurance Plan Option of your choice when you retire, you will need to be enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B. You become eligible to enroll in Medicare three months before your 65th birthday. The Social Security Administration handles Medicare eligibility and enrollment. You can contact the Social Security Administration at 1-800-772-1213 to enroll in Medicare or to ask questions about your eligibility. You can also visit their website at www.socialsecurity.gov.
Choose your Emeriti Health Insurance Options. In 2008, you will be able to build your own plan from a menu of medical, drug, and dental options at varying levels of coverage and cost. Now is a good time to start thinking about which level of coverage is right for you and for your spouse, (or domestic partner, if elected by your institution), or eligible dependent(s).
- To learn more about your Health Plan Options through Aetna (or HealthPartners for Minnesota institutions and their Minnesota-resident retirees), please review the Post-65 Plans.
- Use the Emeriti Health Insurance Plan Option Rate Guide to see what your estimated health plan premiums may be for each option, including the options available to any eligible under-65 dependents.
- Your spouse (or domestic partner if elected by your institution) can be enrolled in Emeriti Insurance at the same time you enroll. For more information about dependent coverage, review the Pre-65 Dependents Plan.
Check your account balance. Log on to Fidelity NetBenefits® and check your Emeriti Health Account balances. See how you are progressing toward your goal by comparing your balances with the estimate that you received from the Retirement Health Care Calculator. The premium estimates that you received from the Emeriti Health Insurance Plan Option Rate Guide may help you put together more realistic figures for your health care expenses during your impending retirement.
Thinking about retiring early? If you are planning to retire early (before 65), see if your institution provides coverage under its active medical plan for early retirements. Emeriti does not cover retirees until they reach age 65 and are enrolled in Medicare Parts A and B.
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 Check the performance and the current asset allocation of your Emeriti investment option(s). Just log on to NetBenefitsSM, select Performance from the left-hand navigation bar under the Savings & Retirement tab, and choose the name of the fund you wish to find information on. At this stage, if you are nearing retirement and your Health Account funds are invested in the Freedom Fund appropriate to your anticipated retirement date, the allocation of your chosen fund will have moved to the more conservative end of the spectrum. This is in preparation for preserving your assets as you enter the phase where you will be drawing funds from the account to cover your health plan premiums and qualified medical expenses in retirement.
Select your retirement date. Since there are so many benefits that kick in when you retire, you should be planning toward a specific retirement date so that you can notify your institution's benefits office. Select your retirement date and notify your benefits office as early as possible, so that you can be sure you take all of the appropriate steps in a timely manner, and ensure that there is no gap in any coverage when you leave your employer.
Review all of your retirement benefits. Contact your employer's benefits office and ask for a full summary of all of your retirement benefits. Review them and make sure that everything is accurate and in order – you do not want any surprises when it comes time for you to actually retire.
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