Medicare is available to persons that are turn 65 or are permanently disabled. When you retire you will be given the option to remain insured under the group plan for a specific period of time, depending on the size of the company with whom you are currently employed. If the company has more than 20 employees, you fall under Federal COBRA laws and will be given the option to remain on COBRA for 18 months. Depending on when you retire, this may get you close to Medicare eligibility. The US Government is considering etension of COBRA benefits beyond the 18 months for those that over the age of 60, but you certainly can’t plan your retirement around the epectation of this becoming federal law. We are not familiar enough with your wife’s medical condition to say for certain that it will prevent her from getting insurance under a standard issue individual health plan. However, we can tell you that it will not matter if it is currently dormant or symptomatic when you apply for insurance. The insurance carriers will look at the costs for treating this condition when it is symptomatic, as well as any other health risks that could be possible side effect of this disease. You can call BCBS of South Carolina and speak with a sales counselor. They can inform you of their underwriting guidelines as they pertain to this medical condition. Worst case scenario – The South Carolina Health Insurance Pool provides guaranteed issue coverage for persons that are uninsurable and are losing their COBRA after 18 months. — July 7, 2009 @ 2:12 pm