When can I enroll in Medicare or change my plan?
Most people first enroll in a seven-month window around their 65th birthday. After that, the main chance to change Medicare Advantage or Part D plans is the Annual Enrollment Period, October 15 to December 7, with changes starting January 1. Certain life events open a Special Enrollment Period at other times.
Initial Enrollment Period: when you first become eligible
Your Initial Enrollment Period lasts seven months: the three months before the month you turn 65, your birthday month, and the three months after. Enrolling in the first three months means coverage starts the first day of your birthday month. Enrolling later in the window delays the start.
If you already receive Social Security benefits when you turn 65, you are usually enrolled in Parts A and B automatically. If not, you sign up through Social Security.
Annual Enrollment Period: October 15 to December 7
This is the yearly window when anyone with Medicare can join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage plan or a Part D prescription drug plan. Changes take effect January 1. It is the busiest season at every office in this directory, and the reason many offices add hours each fall.
Each September your current plan sends an Annual Notice of Change describing what will be different next year. Reading it before October 15 is the best preparation for a visit.
Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period: January 1 to March 31
If you are in a Medicare Advantage plan on January 1, you get one chance during these three months to switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan or return to Original Medicare with a Part D plan. People on Original Medicare cannot use this period to join Medicare Advantage.
Special Enrollment Periods: when life changes
Certain events open a window outside the regular periods. Common ones are moving out of your plan’s service area, losing employer coverage, your plan ending or leaving your area, qualifying for Medicaid or Extra Help, or moving into or out of a nursing facility. The length of the window and the choices available depend on the event, so this is a good question to bring to an agent.
Medigap: a different clock
Medicare Supplement, or Medigap, plans follow their own rule. Your best time to buy is the six months starting the month you are 65 or older and enrolled in Part B. During that window an insurer must sell you a policy regardless of your health. Outside it, in most states, the insurer can ask health questions and may decline or charge more.
Common questions
What if I missed my Initial Enrollment Period?
You can sign up for Part B during the General Enrollment Period, January 1 to March 31, with coverage starting the month after you enroll. A late enrollment penalty may apply unless you had other qualifying coverage, such as from an employer.
Can I change my Medicare Advantage plan any time?
No. Outside the Annual Enrollment Period and the January-to-March Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period, you need a Special Enrollment Period triggered by a qualifying event.
When does a change made during Annual Enrollment start?
January 1 of the following year.
Talk it through in person
Every office in this directory has licensed agents who will sit down with you, at no cost, and go through your situation. Find a Medicare office near you →