u/Quick-Procedure-8017

EDIT to say I’m in Pennsylvania.

Having just retired, my husband and I will both be starting Medicare on September first. We are going through the process of picking plans right now. He is service connected VA so he will just get an Advantage plan as a backup plan. I have no other coverage so I will be going with original Medicare under part N and part D. My question is this, since we are just now choosing, what will happen during open enrollment this year? Since it’s so soon should we do anything to review other plans or just let things ride with what we are choosing now?

My Medicare starts September 1. EDIT to clarify I will have Parts AB&D along with the N supplement. I was hoping to ease into things for the next four months figuring out how this works before the new year. However, I just found out that I have to have an exploratory outpatient surgery in September to look for an internal hernia that could be life threatening. It is planned as an outpatient procedure but I may have to stay if they actually find something that needs repaired. I know I will have to pay the $283 deductible. What other charges should I expect? EDIT to say that the hospital and surgeon both accept Medicare. I am in Pennsylvania.

I live in PA and getting ready to go on Medicare. How do I figure out if I should go with N, G, or HDG?

I (64F) retired at 62 in January of 2024. That same year, my husband received a lump sum payout on one of his retirement accounts. We used the money to pay off all of our debt. I receive SS of $955 and pension of $1122 monthly. He (65M) just retired yesterday and will receive his first SS of $2368 in August. Our monthly income will be $4,445 monthly from this point forward. I got a letter today stating that, when my Medicare Part B starts in September, I will have to pay an extra $81.20 monthly because our 2024 income was over $218,000 two years ago. Our income now is only around $53,000 per year. Paying extra will be a hardship. Is there a way to have it adjusted?

EDIT: I have completed form SS44 and will take it to our local SS office. I believe I can use our ITR from 2025 ($95,000) as it shows our income decreased significantly again. It was only high that one year due to the lump sum. In 2026 it will be around $80k due to his retirement. Then around $53k yearly going forward.

Traveling from Lewistown to Pittsburgh and back this Friday/Monday. We have Business class tickets and would like to be near the cafe car. As Lewistown is an unstaffed station, how will we know which car to board and where to sit? Thank you!

How difficult will it be to walk across MLK Jr. East Busway from the train station to Grant St. Friday evening?

The Pittsburgh group won’t let me post there. 🙄
My husband (65M) and I (64F) are visiting Pittsburgh for a long weekend in June. We are taking the train (for a different experience) from central PA and will be staying at the Residence Inn just outside the entrance to PNC Park. What is the best way for us to get from Union Station to the hotel? We won’t have a lot of luggage but we will have a few bags.

We will be going to a Pirates game while we are there. Some other plans are to go to the Heinz History Center the same day as the game since it’s a 4:05pm game. Then on Sunday, we will spend the day in the Station Square/South Shore area. We plan to take the incline(s) which is better? Also planning a ride on the Gateway Clipper and just walking around the South Shore area. What’s the best way to get from the hotel to the South Shore area and back?

I had wanted to visit some Polish cultural places since my heritage is Eastern European (both of my grandparents immigrated to Pittsburgh in the early 1900’s). I researched Polish Hill and while it looks cool, I couldn’t figure out what to do there.

Thanks for any tips!