You can enroll in Medicare during your Initial Enrollment Period, which starts three months before your 65th birthday, includes your birth month, and ends three months after your birth month. There are exceptions to getting on Medicare prior to the age of 65, you have to have a qualifying disability and have to be on SSDI, not to be mistaken with SSI.

Original Medicare: Program provided and ran by the government; this includes a monthly Part B premium that is required by all members unless receiving additional assistance from the state via Extra Help. Original Medicare only covers 80% of the healthcare costs you accrue from rendered services, therefore meaning you are responsible for the remaining 20%. There is no maximum out of pocket, and it does not include prescription drug coverage therefore requiring you to get a standalone prescription drug plan for an additional premium.

Medicare Advantage: Provided through private insurance companies and offer coverage through either an HMO or PPO where you have co-pays, coinsurance, and a maximum out of pocket. They have two options available: Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug aka MAPD (Includes RX Coverage) and Medicare Advantage aka MA Only (No Rx Coverage). The prescription drug coverage is bundled into the Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug and has no monthly cost. Often times these plans offer rich ancillary benefits such as dental, vision, hearing, acupuncture, chiropractic, transportation, over the counter benefits, monthly grocery allowance and potentially others. These plans often times don't have monthly premiums, but in the rare case they do it's typically very low.

You do not need to add a Medicare Supplement plan, if you're going with a Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug (MAPD) or Medicare Advantage (MA). It is recommended that you get on a supplement in addition to your Original Medicare if you do not get either of the products mentioned earlier. Original Medicare itself will only cover 80% of Medicare approved costs, you will be responsible for the 20% if you don't have the Medicare Supplement. If you have the Medicare Supplement, MAPD, MA they will cover the 20%.

HMO: When you decide to buy an HMO plan you have to choose a primary care physician within a medical group. The referrals you receive from that provider are for you to see specialists within that medical group. The only time that you're able to see specialist that are not within the medical group is if they don't have said specialist. Monthly premium, co-pays and coinsurances are substantially cheaper than PPO.

PPO: The PPO plan does not require you to select a primary care physician and allows you to see all of the doctors that the insurance carriers have contracts with. There is still an in-network and out-of-network with PPO due to popular belief that PPO does not. The major difference compared to HMO is you don't have to obtain a referral prior to seeing a specialist. Monthly premium, co-pays and coinsurances are substantially more expensive than HMO.