Claimants who are approved for Social Security disability become eligible for Medicare starting at the 25th month after they first become eligible for payment of disability benefits. This 24 month waiting period combined with the 5 month waiting period for SSDI benefits makes for a great deal of confusion.

In this article I explain how the two waiting periods work together and I provide two examples of cases to demonstrate how and when Medicare comes into play for approved SSDI claimants.