Equitable relief can be granted to allow an individual"s SMI coverage to end effective
with the termination of buy-in coverage, thus allowing the individual to avoid entirely
any premium liability. To do this, all of the following conditions must be met:
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•
the individual submits a written request to have the individual SMI coverage end effective
with the end of buy-in coverage;
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•
such request is filed within 30 days of the date of the HCFA-L1636 or other notice
informing the beneficiary of the buy-in termination; and
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•
the individual certifies that the claimant has incurred no medical services covered
under SMI after the last month of buy-in coverage.
REMINDER: An individual granted retroactive SMI termination should be cautioned that if the
claimant receives reimbursement for services received after buy-in ended, the amount
of that reimbursement represents an overpayment and can be collected later upon reenrollment.
If the claimant is a monthly social security or Railroad Retirement beneficiary, it
is collected from monthly benefits.