Each year's Medicare open enrollment period runs from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7.
During the open enrollment period, beneficiaries can make changes to various aspects of their coverage, including:
- Switching from Original Medicare to Medicare Advantage, or vice versa
- Switching from one Medicare Advantage plan to another, or from one Medicare Part D (prescription drug) plan to another
- Enrolling in a Medicare Part D plan after not doing so when first eligible, although a late enrollment penalty may apply
If you want to enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan, you must meet some basic criteria.
- You must be enrolled in Medicare Part A and B.
- You must live in the plan’s service area.
If you’re already enrolled in a Medicare Part D prescription plan or a Medicare Advantage plan and you don’t want to make changes to your coverage for the coming year, you don’t need to do anything. If your plan is being discontinued and isn’t eligible for renewal, you will receive notification from your carrier that you must change plans.
Details About Medicare
More details about the different types of Medicare and the monthly premiums and coverages.
Medicare and Tricare
If you have Tricare, you generally must enroll in Part A and Part B when you're first eligible to keep your Tricare coverage. For more information about Tricare and Medicare Part D, see our Medicare Part D and Tricare page.
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