Sitting Out Medicare Open Enrollment This Year?
It’s a mistake you can kick yourself for.
Chances are you won’t spend hours each week thinking about Medicare coverage. Rather, you probably only think about your Medicare plan when it comes time to actually use it.
But at this stage of the year, it pays to keep Medicare on the brain. The Medicare open enrollment period recently began. You have an opportunity to make changes to your Medicare coverage between now and December 7th.
This could mean:
- Getting a new Part D drug plan
- Switching to a new Medicare Advantage plan
- Converting from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare
If you like your current Medicare plan, you may be inclined to opt out of open enrollment and stay with your current coverage. But it’s a decision you may regret. Here’s why.
1. You might find a new plan with lower out-of-pocket costs
Health care tends to be a huge expense for retirees. For some seniors, it’s actually their biggest expense.
Chances are, as a retiree, you’re interested in cost savings. You may have a limited income that consists of a small nest egg and Social Security.
The reason it might be a mistake to sit out open enrollment without seeing what’s out there is because there may be a cheaper Medicare plan than the one you’re currently on. And this does not only apply to premiums.
Even if you have a $0 premium plan, there may be another plan that comes with lower deductibles, coinsurance, or copays. So it’s worth looking around to see if that’s the case.
Even if you have money to cover these costs, such as a health savings account balance you’ve carried over to retirement, it doesn’t make sense to spend more than you have to on health care. With a new Medicare plan, you may find that your costs are lower without having to give up benefits. That’s a win-win.
2. You can find a new tariff with a better network of providers
One of the disadvantages of Medicare Advantage plans is that they usually limit you to a rather narrow network of health care providers.
At this point, you may be used to working on this network. But what if there is a Medicare Advantage plan that could give you access to even more doctors or more qualified providers that are close to home? If you don’t look around, you won’t find out.
3. You can get access to new additional benefits
It is common for Medicare Advantage plans to offer additional benefits beyond what original Medicare will pay for. Result? More benefits for you and more potential savings.
It pays to look into different Medicare Advantage plans to see if there are other benefits you may qualify for that will make your life easier. For example, some Advantage plans offer meal delivery services for enrollees with certain health conditions. A service like this can make a huge difference if you are at the point where you are having trouble driving or moving.
4. You can get better customer service elsewhere
As a Medicare enrollee, you may find yourself with questions about your plan’s coverage. Or you may need to go through a pre-authorization process for certain services.
If this and other processes are difficult to navigate and your Medicare plan’s customer service leaves a lot to be desired, that’s another reason to look into switching. You may find a comparable plan with a better rating, which means members are more satisfied with the service and care they receive.
If you don’t have any problems with your current Medicare plan, you may be inclined to skip open enrollment this year. But it pays to look around and see what else is out there. You may find that a few hours of your time will lead to better coverage and lower costs in 2026.