Do You Need to Notify Medicare When Someone Dies?

In most cases, notifying Medicare when someone dies isn’t something you have to do yourself. The funeral home reports the death to the Social Security Administration, and SSA passes that information to Medicare, which ends Original Medicare coverage automatically.¹ Your job is to confirm that report actually went through, return any Social Security payment that arrives for the month of death, and cancel any private Medicare plans, because those won’t stop on their own.

Confirm the Funeral Home Reported the Death

Funeral homes typically file the death report to SSA as part of their standard services. Give the funeral director the deceased person’s Social Security number so they can do it.²

Even so, the family or estate executor should follow up with SSA to make sure the report was received. If no funeral home was involved, or the director didn’t file the report, you’ll need to call SSA yourself.³ SSA asks that you notify them as soon as possible.²

How to Reach SSA

SSA accepts death reports only by phone or in person. There is no online option.⁴

By phone: 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778), Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tell the representative you’re reporting a death.³
In person: your local Social Security office, which you can find through the SSA office locator.

What to Have Ready

Before you call, gather the deceased’s full legal name, Social Security number, date of birth, date of death, and place of death. If there’s a surviving spouse or dependent children, have their Social Security numbers too, since SSA will use them to process any survivor benefits.⁵

You don’t need the death certificate in hand to start the report, but you’ll need a certified copy to finish it and to handle everything else on this list.⁴ Order certified copies through the vital records office in the state where the death occurred. Fees generally run $15 to $25 per copy. Order several. Banks, insurers, and other agencies each want their own.

Return the Social Security Payment for the Month of Death

This catches families off guard. Social Security benefits are not payable for the month a person dies, even if they were alive for most of it. Because payments arrive the month after they’re earned, the deposit or check that shows up the month following the death has to go back.⁶

If someone died in July, the August deposit covering July needs to be returned. How you return it depends on how it was paid:

Direct deposit: contact the bank and ask them to return the payment to SSA.⁷
Paper check: don’t cash it. Return it to SSA.

If the funds already went into a joint account and were spent, SSA can recover the overpayment by withholding future benefits on the deceased’s earnings record or by seeking repayment from the estate. Moving quickly avoids that.

Cancel Private Medicare Plans Yourself

Reporting the death handles Original Medicare (Parts A and B). Private Medicare plans are separate contracts, and SSA’s notification doesn’t touch them. If nobody calls, premiums can keep coming out.

Medicare Advantage and Part D

For a Medicare Advantage plan or a standalone Part D drug plan, call the customer service number on the insurance card. Have the member’s name, date of birth, and a certified copy of the death certificate ready. Ask for written confirmation that the plan is canceled and verify that any automatic premium payments have stopped. Coverage ends as of the date of death, and premiums collected for any period after that should be refunded to the estate.

Medigap

Medigap policies are individual contracts, so each spouse has their own. One spouse’s death does not affect the other’s coverage. Contact the insurer directly, submit a death certificate, and confirm cancellation. Unused premiums go back to the estate. If automatic deductions continue after you’ve notified the insurer, call them again or contact SSA to stop the withdrawals.

Ask About the Part B Premium Refund

If Part B premiums were paid for any month after the date of death, CMS is required to refund the excess. The refund goes first to whoever actually paid the premiums; if the enrollee was paying, it goes to the estate’s representative.⁸

When there’s no estate representative, federal regulations set a priority order beginning with a surviving spouse who lived with the deceased, then children receiving Social Security on the same earnings record, then parents on that record, then more distant relatives.⁸ The refund should process once the death is recorded in SSA’s systems. Follow up if months go by and nothing arrives.

Ask About the $255 Lump-Sum Death Payment

While you have SSA on the line, ask about the one-time lump-sum death payment of $255. It goes to a surviving spouse, or if there isn’t one, to eligible children (under 18, full-time students ages 18 to 19, or adult children disabled before age 22).⁹

You have two years from the date of death to apply, but it’s easiest to raise when you’re already reporting the death. A surviving spouse who wasn’t living with the deceased may still qualify if they were receiving benefits on the deceased’s record.⁹

Handle Bills and Watch the Statements That Arrive Later

Medicare Summary Notices and bills for care the deceased received before death remain the estate’s responsibility. They don’t disappear because the beneficiary has passed.

Read each statement carefully. Billing errors are common, and any charge for services dated after the death is a red flag. For questions about specific claims, call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227); TTY users can call 1-877-486-2048.¹⁰

Once outstanding claims are settled, cut the Medicare card into pieces before throwing it out. If Explanation of Benefits notices arrive listing services the deceased couldn’t have received, report it to the HHS Office of Inspector General at 1-800-HHS-TIPS (1-800-447-8477). Fraud using deceased beneficiaries’ numbers is a known problem, and early reports limit the damage.

Two Things the Medicare Notification Does Not Handle

Medicare Medical Savings Accounts

If the deceased had a Medicare Medical Savings Account plan, the balance doesn’t simply pass to next of kin. Funds deposited before the current calendar year become part of the estate and count as gross income on the final tax return. A portion of the current year’s deposit has to be returned to Medicare based on the months remaining in the year at death. If a non-spouse beneficiary is named on the account, remaining funds count toward that person’s gross income for the year they receive them.¹¹ Work with a tax professional on the final return.

Medicaid Estate Recovery

If the deceased also had Medicaid, the state Medicaid program may seek to recover costs from the estate. Federal law requires states to pursue repayment for nursing facility services, home and community-based services, and related hospital and prescription drug costs provided to people age 55 and older. States cannot recover when the deceased is survived by a spouse, a child under 21, or a blind or disabled child of any age, and they must have procedures for waiving recovery in cases of undue hardship.¹² If an exemption or hardship waiver may apply, contact the state Medicaid office before paying any recovery claim.

1
Medicare. Report a Death
2
Social Security Administration. What Should I Do When Someone Dies
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Social Security Administration. What to Do When Someone Dies
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USAGov. Report the Death of a Social Security Beneficiary
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Social Security Administration. Survivors Benefits
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Social Security Administration. What You Need to Know When You Get Retirement or Survivors Benefits
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Social Security Administration. How Social Security Can Help You When a Family Member Dies
8
eCFR. 42 CFR 408.112 – Refund of Excess Premiums After the Enrollee Dies
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Social Security Administration. Lump-Sum Death Payment
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Medicare. Talk to Someone – Contact Medicare
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Medicare. Medicare Medical Savings Account (MSA) Plans
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Medicaid.gov. Estate Recovery