12/26/2025
Everyone on Medicare knows about Annual Enrollment Period, which is October 15th to December 7th of each year, when you can enroll into (or change) a Medicare Advantage plan or a Medicare Prescription Drug plan that exists in the zip code you reside in, as long as you have Medicare parts A and B.
Not everyone knows about Open Enrollment Period because it’s not as widely publicized.
OEP is January 1st to March 31st and is a time period where those who ALREADY have a Medicare Advantage plan, can change plans one time in those first 3 months of the year.
Why would you need to change after we just came out of AEP? Good question!
1. Not everyone realizes their plan changes from year to year as drastically as it does. Or maybe yours has never changed that much before, so it catches you off guard when you go to your P*P January 15th and realize you now have to pay a copay for the first time ever. 😱
Medicare Advantage plans are required to cover everything that’s covered by original Medicare, however they can change the benefits (the way they cover it) each year based off of their business for the previous year.
*Don’t forget that these insurance companies are in fact companies and have business agendas.
Just because a plan was sold to you and it sounded like the best plan that you’ve ever heard of on the Earth does not mean it’s gonna stay that way from year to year.
2. Not everyone was able to make changes between October 15 and December 7 because of life happening. Sometimes life gets in the way of our plans and so Open Enrollment Period exists as a time that helps you make sure you’re in the right plan that meets your needs, even if you missed AEP.
3. Doctors and hospitals have been in negotiations with insurance companies and don’t come to the agreement you hoped for by January 1, meaning you have to either change doctors or change plans.
The good news is if you find yourself in a plan that has surprises for 2026 that you’re not happy with, YOU STILL HAVE OPTIONS! You are not stuck!! 🙌🏼
