Toni:
In January, I applied for my Medicare card and the card arrived yesterday, but I don’t understand why my Medicare number is my Social Security number with a “T” at the end. What is the “T” for?
Most of my friends have an “A” on their card. Now I’m concerned I have done something wrong. Please explain so that I can stop worrying. I never knew that retiring and applying for Medicare was so stressful. My mother never had these problems!
Sandy from Minnesota.
Sandy:
Do not stress yourself out! Everything is fine!
You having a “T” at the end of your Social Security number informs me that you are not receiving your Social Security check yet. The “T” stands for temporary and when you receive your Social Security check, then your Medicare number will change from ending in a “T” to having “A” at the end.
Therefore, your friends and co-workers have an “A” on their Medicare card because they are already receiving their Social Security check.
There are more than 30 letter codes which can be attached to a Social Security number to make up a person’s Medicare number with “A” being the most common. An “A” at the end of your Social Security number indicates that you receive Medicare benefits because you paid into the program while you were working.
If your Medicare eligibility is based on someone else’s work history, such as a current spouse, deceased spouse, or ex-spouse, yours will be a completely different Social Security number followed by a letter.
For example, if you receive Medicare because you are the wife of the wage earner, and you are 62 years of age or older, your Medicare number will be your husband’s Social Security number followed by the letter “B”.
If you are the spouse of a deceased spouse that is claiming that deceased spouse’s Social Security benefits and now you are receiving Medicare benefits, then your Medicare number will be the deceased spouse’s Social Security number ending in a “D”.
What if you are claiming your Social Security from an ex-spouse? There is an easy answer to this question. Your Medicare number will be their Social Security number with a “B6” if you are the divorced spouse and will be “D6” if you are the divorced surviving spouse.
For those who are receiving Medicare benefits from retiring from with Railroad benefits, then your Medicare number begins with a letter such as A or B or T, etc. followed by the specific Social Security number.
