The 2013 annual Open Enrollment Period (or OEP) closed Friday, December 7th at midnight and most people now will only have a limited opportunity to change their 2013 Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage plan coverage before next year's 2014 Open Enrollment Period - that starts on October 15, 2013.
However, depending on your situation, you may be able to take advantage of a Special Enrollment Period to change your Medicare plan coverage outside of the annual Open Enrollment Period. For instance, all Medicare beneficiaries receiving financial Extra Help with their Medicare Part D plan are automatically granted a continuous Special Enrollment Period throughout 2013. Likewise, if you move outside of your Medicare plan's Service Area, you will be granted a Special Enrollment Period to join a Medicare plan that is available in your new area of residence. You can
click here for more information on the 2013 Special Enrollment Periods.
What happens if your Medicare Part D or Medicar Advantage plan is not offered in 2013?
The Service Area Reduction Special Enrollment Period - If your Medicare plan is non-renewing or being discontinued in 2013 (not consolidated or merged into another plan), and you did not join another Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage plan during the Open Enrollment Period, you could be without prescription coverage for all of 2013 - unless you join a new plan. However, since your plan is being discontinued, you will be granted a Special Enrollment Period from December 8th through February 28th during which you can join a 2013 Medicare Part D plan or Medicare Advantage plan. Remember, your Medicare plan coverage begins on the first day of the month following enrollment.
Were you impacted by Hurricane Sandy?
If you were affected by Hurricane Sandy and not able to make a Medicare plan decision during the annual Open Enrollment Period, you may be entitled to an extended 2013 annual Open Enrollment Period. Please telephone Medicare at 1-800-633-4227 and speak with a Medicare representative for more information.
Have you just decided that you do not want your 2013 Medicare Advantage plan?
If you have enrolled into a 2013 Medicare Advantage plan (with or without prescription drug coverage) and now have changed your mind about your coverage, you can take advantage of the 2013 Medicare Advantage Disenrollment Period (or MADP) that begins on January 1, 2013 and continues through February 14th. During the MADP, you can drop your Medicare Advantage plan and return to original Medicare, plus you will be able to join a stand-alone Medicare Part D prescription drug plan (even if your 2013 Medicare Advantage plan did not include prescription drug coverage).
If you still wish to get an overview of all 2013 Medicare Part D plans or Medicare Advantage plans that are available in your area, you can use our
PDP-Finder or
MA-Finder tools. To get you started, here is a PDP-Finder example to see all 2013 stand-alone Medicare Part D Plans available in Ohio:
https://q1medicare.com/PartD-SearchPDPMedicare-2013PlanFinder.php?state=OH (you can just change "Ohio" to your own state to see the plans in your area).