Health Affairs, 27, no. 3 (2008): w175-w184 (Published online 25 March 2008) doi: 10.1377/hlthaff.27.3.w175 © 2008 by Project HOPE	New Online   Senate Health Reform Bill   Rewarding Providers   Public Option Policy Brief   Health Reform & Abortion   Delivery System Reform

This Article Figures Only Full Text (HTML) Reprint (PDF) Submit a response to this article Comments: View responses Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when Comments are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services E-mail this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Add to My Personal Archive Download to Citation Manager Reprints & Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Short, P. F. Articles by Weaver, F. M. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Short, P. F. Articles by Weaver, F. M. Related Collections Access To Care Health Reform Insurance Coverage Legal/Regulatory Issues Managed Care - Medicare Medicare Chronic Care Consumer Issues Insurance Market Demography

Web Exclusives

Transitioning To Medicare Before Age Sixty-Five

Disabled workers who start receiving Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) must wait twenty-four months to qualify for Medicare. Legislation introduced in Congress would eliminate this waiting period, to guarantee that people with disabilities severe enough to qualify for SSDI will not be uninsured. We provide a longitudinal view of Medicare enrollment before age sixty-five by following a national sample of people ages 55–64. One person in six was covered by Medicare before turning sixty-five. A quarter of new enrollees were uninsured during the waiting period. There were great disparities in reliance on Medicare and coverage in the waiting period.

                      What's this?

Comments: