[caption id="attachment_15329" align="alignleft" width="285"] Notice how the signup for actual Medicare is under an ad that looks official but its designed to have you sign up for Medicare Advantage instead.[/caption] Like many Americans, I am approaching Medicare age. Switching to Medicare requires signing up through the Center for Medicare Services. While many of us do not realize how great this can be, many of us are duped into signing up for Medicare Advantage plans instead. It begins with a massive barrage of mail, television ads to speak to experts (a huge boiler room paid on commission), and paid-for ads on the internet placed above actual Medicare. There is huge money being made by spending all this money to have you sign up for Medicare Advantage plans which are a private version of Medicare which is a public private partnership with low profit margins, high participation by doctors nationally and the best care. Private for profit interests have blanketed everything from mail, to your phone to television to the internet to get these huge dollars awaiting for them as they sell you a plan that will cost you more and deliver less. It sounds great until you use it and find out that getting into Medicare later on will cost more than doing it first. Is it any wonder many people then stick with these plans? If you move to another state, you still have coverage. Move to Medicare Advantage, not so much. Much has been written about how Medicare Advantage has been so successful. The truth is, if you are tired of the denials of care, the messiness of wondering about networks, and the cost of care, even with a supplement that will cover you at 100 percent of care, you will pay much less in overall premiums if you sign up for Medicare through CMS first. If you want the free gym membership, you can purchase a United Healthcare AARP supplement which includes it. If you are a chiropractic patient used to the great results, combined with your copayment, you are likely to find out that your coverage is so minimal with Medicare Advantage that you practically pay nothing due to the current limits of chiropractic coverage under Medicare. You can help change this by going to this website and asking your legislators to support the Medicare Modernization Act. Here is how to apply for Medicare through CMS, The center for Medicare Services. Enrolling in Medicare in your 60s There are several ways to enroll in Medicare: If you begin receiving Social Security retirement benefits between age 62 and up to 4 months before turning 65, you will be automatically enrolled in Medicare Part A and Part B when you turn 65. If you apply for Social Security 3 months before you turn 65 or later, you can sign up for Medicare when you apply for Social Security. The Initial Enrollment Period to sign up for Medicare begins 3 months before you turn 65 and ends 3 months after the month you turn 65--a total of 7 months. You may have to pay a penalty if you miss your Initial Enrollment Period. If you are not ready to receive Social Security benefits at 65 because you are still working, you can apply online for Medicare only. Or, you may be able to wait until you retire to sign up during a special enrollment period. Read this important information explaining when to sign up for Medicare, based on your situation. Then when you are ready to apply, use this link to go to the true official Medicare sign up page. https://www.ssa.gov/medicare/sign-up Here is where you want to click to sign up for traditional Medicare and then follow the process. You can begin three months before your 65th birthday to sign up. That is all there is to it. You do not need a concierge to help you. You may want to have someone help you choose Medicare supplement plans for the best deal. AARP has some great offerings so start there.