I started receiving social security this month August. I have already been on Medicare and paid my part B premium quarterly. When I got my Ssa payment, my part b premium was not deducted as expected. What do I need to do to get it automatically deducted, or will it just start to deduct when the amounts I have already paid are used up? I don’t want to be delinquent in making a payment, but don’t want to pay any further premiums if the are going to start automatically at some point. Is there something I need to do?

Hi. I think you better check with Social Security to make sure that your records reflect that you have Part B coverage. In my experience, Social Security always withholds Part B premiums whenever a person has Part B coverage and is receiving benefits. That's true even if the person has paid quarterly premiums out of pocket in advance prior to starting to collect monthly benefits. In those cases, Social Security later refunds any duplicate premiums that they withhold.

I suppose it's possible that Social Security has improved their process to allow for not withholding premiums for months that a person has paid out of pocket, but I doubt that's the case. So, if I were you I'd call Social Security to ask them to verify that your Part B coverage is still in force and that your Part B premiums are scheduled for withholding from your benefits.

Best, Jerry