Your Marketplace plan does not end on its own when Medicare starts. You have to end it yourself.
Step by step
1. Find your Medicare start date. It's on your Medicare card or your letter from Social Security. 2. Tell the Marketplace before Medicare starts. On HealthCare.gov, you can report your Medicare start date up to 3 months early. Log in, update your application, and choose an end date for the person moving to Medicare. If your state runs its own Marketplace, contact it to ask how to do this. 3. Pick the right end date. End your Marketplace coverage on the last day before Medicare starts. Example: if Medicare starts May 1, end your Marketplace plan on April 30. 4. Check the rest of your household. If others on your plan are staying, make sure their plan is still in place. 5. Keep your confirmation. Save a copy of the Marketplace notice that shows the end date.
What happens to your premium tax credit
- Once you're eligible for premium-free Part A, you can't get a premium tax credit for yourself. Starting with your first month of Medicare, you'd pay full price for a Marketplace plan.
- Skipping Medicare doesn't let you keep the credit. Under IRS rules, if you're eligible for premium-free Part A and don't sign up by the end of the third full month after you become eligible, you lose the credit anyway.
- If you keep the credit too long, you may have to pay it back when you file your taxes. Starting with tax year 2026, there's no limit on how much you may have to repay.
- If you have to buy Part A, you can choose Medicare or a Marketplace plan. You can still get a premium tax credit as long as you don't enroll in Part A. Part B late penalties can still apply if you sign up for Part B later, so talk it through before you decide.
It's against federal law for someone who knows you have Medicare to sell you a Marketplace plan. The exception is if you have to pay a premium for Part A.
More Medicare topics
When to sign up
Your 7-month Initial Enrollment Period, when Medicare coverage starts, automatic enrollment and premium-free vs paid Part A.
Read more
Part B and late penalties
Why a Marketplace plan doesn’t let you delay Part B, how the Part B late penalty works, and 2026 Part B costs.
Read more
Your Medicare choices
Compare Original Medicare with Medigap and Part D against Medicare Advantage (Part C), and when you can make changes later.
Read more
Help with costs
Medicare Savings Programs, Extra Help for Part D and Medicaid can lower what you pay for Medicare if your income is limited.
Read more
Medicare and Marketplace rules can change. Check Medicare.gov, SSA.gov or HealthCare.gov for the latest rules.
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