Responding to questions from readers

Q : I will be reaching 65 soon, as will my wife. I will continue to work after 65, and my health-insurance coverage at work will cover me and my wife. I understand that it is not necessary for me or my wife to enroll in Medicare at 65, and we can enroll without penalty at a later date. Can you confirm this? When must I enroll?

A: It is true that as long as you and your wife are covered under your employer's health plan, you can delay enrolling in Medicare until you are not covered by your employer.

If you enroll in Part B at age 65, you will be subject to Part B premiums and you may lose your ability to enroll in a Medigap enrollment plan later or be subject to penalties for late enrollment. The special period to enroll in Medicare after your employment ends is "during the eight-month period that begins after the employment ends or the coverage ends, whichever happens first."

I suggest you obtain "Medicare and You 2024," the official U.S. government Medicare handbook, which is available at no cost at www.medicare.gov/medicare-and-you.

Q: I may have contributed more to my Roth IRA account than I was allowed to in 2023. How can I avoid a penalty?

A: There are three options you can use to rectify a Roth overcontribution. They are:

• Withdraw your excess contributions. You won't face any penalties if you simply withdraw your excess contribution — plus any income it has earned in the meantime — by the due date for your tax return, including extensions. You will, however, have to include the earnings portion in your taxable income for the year.

Note that even if you have already filed your tax return for the year, you can still withdraw the contribution within six months of your tax return's due date (excluding extensions). You would have to file an amended return, and include an explanation regarding the withdrawal.

• Recharacterize your excess contributions. Another option is to recharacterize your excess Roth contributions by moving them into a traditional IRA. You can do that by instructing the financial institution that holds your Roth IRA to transfer the excess amount, plus any income it has accumulated, into a traditional IRA either at that same financial institution (a sametrustee transfer) or another one (a trustee-to-trustee transfer).

The IRS says, "If this is done by the due date for filing your tax return (including extensions), you can treat the contribution as made to the second IRA for that year.

• Apply the excess contribution and its earnings to a future year's Roth IRA, as long as you stay within the limits for that year. However, you may still be subject to the 6% penalty for the year.

Q: In a recent column you wrote that Kaiser indicated there were no premiums for Medicare Advantage. I believe that is incorrect. Isn't there a monthly premium for Part B in Medicare Advantage?

A: There is a premium for Part B with Medicare Advantage programs. Some Medicare Advantage plans do provide a rebate. Kaiser may have been referring to Medicaid premiums and/or to Part D, prescription-drug coverage, which does have premiums with traditional Medicare.

Q: My wife filed early for her Social Security benefit. I subsequently filed for my Social Security benefit at age 70. Doesn't that make her eligible for a larger benefit than she now has?

A: If your Social Security full retirement benefit exceeds your wife's current benefit, she can file for a spousal benefit instead. However, she is not entitled to 50% of your Social Security benefit; because she filed prior to her full retirement age, her spousal benefit would be discounted to less than 50% of your benefit. Also, her spousal benefit would be calculated on the basis of the benefit you qualified for at full retirement age — not on the stepped-up benefit you earned by waiting until age 70 to apply.

Having said that, if you predecease your spouse and she applies for a survivor benefit after she reaches her full retirement age, she would be entitled to 100% of your Social Security benefit at that time, including the additional benefit you were receiving because you waited until age 70 to apply.

Elliot Raphaelson welcomes your questions and comments at [email protected].