AEP Opens October 15: A Calm Checklist for Reviewing Your Plan Before December 7

The Medicare Annual Enrollment Period opens on October 15 and runs through December 7. Around this time of year the mailbox, the TV, and the phone all get louder. None of that noise changes a simple fact: you have more than seven weeks, and a short checklist is all you need to use them well.

First, what this period is for

Between October 15 and December 7, people with Medicare can:

• Switch from one Medicare Advantage plan to another.
• Move from Medicare Advantage back to Original Medicare, or from Original Medicare to Medicare Advantage.
• Join, switch, or drop a Part D prescription drug plan.

Whatever you choose takes effect January 1. And if you make more than one change during the period, the last one you make is the one that counts.

Step 1 — Gather three things

Before comparing anything, set these on the kitchen table:

• Your plan's Annual Notice of Change letter — mailed by the end of September. It lists what's different about your plan starting January 1.
• A list of your doctors and specialists — full names, plus the hospital you'd want to use.
• A list of your prescriptions — drug name, dose, and how often you take it. Reading the labels straight off the bottles is the easiest way.

Step 2 — Check your doctors

Networks can change from one year to the next. For each doctor on your list, confirm they're expected to stay in your plan's network next year. The plan's provider directory is a starting point, but calling the doctor's office and asking directly is often the most reliable check.

Step 3 — Check your medications

Look up each prescription in the plan's drug list (the formulary) for next year. A drug can stay covered but move to a different tier, which changes what you pay at the pharmacy. Also note whether any drug will need prior authorization or has quantity limits.

Step 4 — Look at total cost, not just the premium

The monthly premium is the easiest number to see and the easiest to over-weigh. Copays for the visits you actually make, coinsurance on specialists, drug costs, and the plan's out-of-pocket maximum all belong in the picture. A plan that looks inexpensive on paper can cost more over a full year if it doesn't match how you use care.

Step 5 — Decide whether anything needs to change

Here's the part that rarely gets said: keeping your current plan is a perfectly valid outcome. If your doctors are still in, your medications are still covered at a cost you're comfortable with, and nothing about your health has shifted, you don't have to do anything. Your coverage generally continues on its own.

If something did change — a new diagnosis, a new specialist, a new prescription — that's when comparing options is worth the time.

A few calm reminders

• Medicare doesn't call you to sell a plan. If someone calls claiming to be from Medicare and asks for your Medicare number, hang up.
• Medigap is separate. This period covers Medicare Advantage and Part D. Medigap policies follow their own rules.
• Free, unbiased help exists. Medicare.gov's plan finder, 1-800-MEDICARE, and your state's SHIP counselors can all walk you through options at no cost.

The bottom line

The Annual Enrollment Period isn't a test. It's a once-a-year chance to confirm your plan still fits your life. Gather your letter and your two lists, check them against next year's details, and let the answer be whatever it turns out to be — including "no change."

Common questions