See When And How To Make The Most Of Medicare Open Enrollment

What’s most important to you? During your earlier years, things like your looks and making money may have been at the top of the list. As time passed, family probably became your priority. And now, as you age, your health may have become king.

Having sufficient healthcare coverage is essential regardless of age, but if you have a disability or are a senior, it becomes even more crucial. Medicare can provide that coverage you need, but health doesn’t tend to stay the same.

For instance, this year, you may have found that you need to see new doctors or specialists. You may need new treatments. Or you may need new prescriptions to fix issues that have appeared in 2020. Before 2021 rolls around, you want to ensure your Medicare plan matches those new needs, and the current Open Enrollment Period (OEP) is the perfect time to complete that task.

If open enrollment is new to you, keep reading so you can learn how it works, and take advantage of it before the period ends.

Open Enrollment’s Primary Purpose

We have Medicare Open Enrollment for one major reason: To give enrollees a chance to review and revamp their plans.

If you’re enrolled in Medicare, you should have received an Annual Notice of Change. In it, you can see what 2021 has in store for your plan in terms of any differences. If those differences don’t affect you much, you can keep your plan. Or you can use open enrollment to look around and find a better fit.

How Open Enrollment Functions

You have between October 15 to December 7 each year to participate in the OEP. This means that before December 7 hits, you’ll need to:

1. Review your current plan.
2. Determine that it fits your needs in terms of providers, services, costs, drugs, etc.
3. Shop for and compare new plans.
4. Pick your new plan.

You can shop for new plans using the official Medicare website. If you find one that seems ideal, you can join it during open enrollment. By joining the new plan, any old plan gets dropped. Once January 1 of the next year hits, that new plan you picked becomes active.

The Benefits of Using Open Enrollment

As mentioned, your healthcare needs may have changed, making your current Medicare plan less than ideal. With open enrollment, you can change it to:

• Better cover prescription costs.
• Fit your budget.
• Add convenience via more in-network providers.
• And so on.

Ways to Use Open Enrollment

You’ll have numerous options at your disposal for ensuring your coverage fits your needs, as the OEP allows you to:

• Enroll in Medicare Advantage or a Part D plan for your very first time.
• Switch from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare Parts A and B, and vice versa.
• Switch between or drop Part D plans.
• Switch between Advantage plans.

The OEP will not, however, allow you to make any moves with Medigap plans. The optimal time for getting one of those is within six months of first becoming eligible for Medicare. During that time, you can get the best price and get approved with ease instead of later on when Medigap prices increase, and acceptance becomes trickier.