10/24/2026
🌿 Thinking about retiring before 65? How should you prepare for health insurance?
When planning for retirement, we often think about housing, everyday expenses, and savings. But what about the money we’ll need to buy health insurance?
This is especially important for W-2 employees, whose employer-provided coverage may end when they leave their job.
If you’re self-employed, you also need to include this expense in your budget for when you no longer have income from work.
📌 Medicare generally begins at age 65 for those who qualify, with some exceptions for people eligible earlier. Retiring before 65 doesn’t mean Medicare starts right away.
Before choosing your retirement date, get clear on these 3 things:
1️⃣ When does your current health insurance end?
Ask HR when your coverage ends and what options are available, such as your spouse’s plan, COBRA if eligible, or the Marketplace.
Losing job-based health coverage may qualify you to enroll in a Marketplace plan outside the annual Open Enrollment period.
Don’t wait until you need medical care to discover that you’re uninsured.
2️⃣ How much should you budget for health insurance each month?
To give you an idea, CMS’s published 2026 data lists these premiums for one 60-year-old in Dallas County, Texas, BEFORE premium tax credits:
• Wellpoint Essential Bronze 6000: about $920/month, with a $6,000 medical deductible.
• Wellpoint Essential Gold 800: about $1,249/month, with an $800 medical deductible.
📍 These are just two examples from published 2026 data, not personal quotes or 2027 prices. Actual prices and available plans need to be checked based on your ZIP code, age, to***co use, and other applicable factors. Financial assistance, if you qualify, also depends on household income and size.
🔎 Don’t look only at the premium.
A deductible is the amount you generally pay for certain services before your plan starts sharing those costs.
Also check copays, coinsurance, the out-of-pocket maximum, and whether your doctors and medications are covered by the plan.
3️⃣ Where will this money come from when you no longer earn income from work?
Include both premiums and out-of-pocket medical expenses in your retirement budget.
If you’re applying for Marketplace financial assistance, estimate your income for the entire year, not just the months after you retire.
Retiring early means planning for more than everyday living expenses. You also need a health insurance plan for the years before Medicare, so you’re not left scrambling over an expense you didn’t account for.
💕 I’m Tracy Vuong. I help families protect what they’ve built, create income they can’t outlive, and retire with more peace of mind.
For general education only, not a substitute for personalized insurance, tax, or financial advice. Illustrative prices are not plan recommendations; eligibility and costs vary by individual circumstances.
