Medicare-Related Enrollment Dates and Guidelines
September & October—Review and Compare Medicare Advantage Plans
- Review any notices from your plan about changes for next year. To learn more about your options download Medicare and You 2025
Compare: In October
- This is the time of year we help our clients find new Prescription Drug Plans and Medicare Advantage Plans to meet their needs for the next calendar year.
- If you want us to do research for you, please send us an up to date list of your Prescriptons and the Doctors you are seeing.
Between: October 15- December 7
- Change from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage Plan.
- Change from a Medicare Advantage Plan back to Original Medicare.
- Switch from one Medicare Advantage Plan to another Medicare Advantage Plan.
- Switch from a Medicare Advantage Plan that doesn’t offer drug coverage to a Medicare Advantage Plan that offers drug coverage.
- Switch from a Medicare Advantage Plan that offers drug coverage to a Medicare Advantage Plan that doesn’t offer drug coverage.
- Join a Medicare Prescription Drug Plan.
- Switch from one Medicare Prescription Drug Plan to another Medicare Prescription Drug Plan.
- Drop your Medicare prescription drug coverage completely.
January 1—Coverage Begins
- Your new coverage begins if you switched to a new plan. If you stay with the same plan, any changes to coverage, benefits, or costs for the new year will begin on January 1.
Between January 1–March 31
- If you’re in a Medicare Advantage Plan (like an HMO or PPO), you can make one change to a different plan or switch back to Original Medicare (and join a stand-alone Medicare Prescription Drug Plan) once during this time. Any changes you make will be effective the first of the month after the plan gets your request.
When to buy a Medicare Supplement policy
- The best time to buy a Medigap policy is during your Medigap Open Enrollment Period, which is the 12 month period that surrounds your 65th birthday or Part B effective date (Six months before to six months after). (Some states have additional Open Enrollment Periods.) After this enrollment period, you may not be able to buy a Medigap policy. If you are able to buy one, it may cost more.
- If you delay in signing up for Part B because you have group health coverage based on your (or your spouse's) current employment, your Medigap Open Enrollment Period won't start until you sign up for Part B.
- For those leaving employer coverage within 63 days of your loss of group coverage.
- You can purchase a Medicare Supplement plan at any time during the year if you are able to say NO to the Medical Questions. An insurance company has the right to decline your underwritten application if they don't like the risk.
- Best to call us and review the questions with you as folks often think the answers to some questions are YES when they are actually NO.
If you have questions about enrollment please give us a call. We're here to help.
This information comes from www.medicare.gov and Medicare and You.
By contacting the phone number on this website you will be directed to a licensed agent.