Your Medicare plan is changing or ending? Here is exactly what to do.

It means the insurer will no longer offer that plan to you next year, either because the plan is being discontinued or because it is leaving your county. Your current coverage stops on December 31, so you need to choose new coverage to avoid a gap. Because the plan is ending through no fault of your own, you get a Special Enrollment Period to pick a new plan, and you may also qualify to buy a Medicare Supplement (Medigap) policy without medical questions. Upload your letter above and we will lay out your specific deadlines and options.

The Annual Notice of Change is the letter your Medicare Advantage or Part D plan mails every year by late September. It describes what is changing for the coming year: premiums, copays, deductibles, the provider network, and which drugs are covered and at what tier. Your plan is usually not ending, but the costs and benefits can shift enough that it is worth comparing your options during the fall enrollment window. Upload your ANOC and we will summarize exactly what changed.

The main window is the Annual Election Period, October 15 to December 7, when anyone can switch Medicare Advantage or Part D plans for coverage starting January 1. If you are in a Medicare Advantage plan, there is a second window, January 1 to March 31, to switch plans once or return to Original Medicare. If your plan is ending or leaving your area, you get an additional Special Enrollment Period, which generally runs December 8 through the end of February. The exact dates that apply to you depend on your notice.

Yes. When your plan is non-renewing or terminating, Medicare gives you a Special Enrollment Period to enroll in new coverage, typically from December 8 through the end of February. You may also have a guaranteed-issue right to buy a Medicare Supplement (Medigap) policy without answering health questions, usually within 63 days of losing coverage. These rights are easy to miss, so we flag them for you when they apply.

That is the most important question, and it has to be checked plan by plan, because each Medicare Advantage and Part D plan has its own provider network and drug list, and both can change from year to year. The free letter check tells you what to investigate. If you want it done for you, CareRoute Decision Support researches whether your specific doctors stay in network and your prescriptions stay covered under the options available to you, then gives you a clear comparison so you can choose with confidence.

Yes. Uploading your notice and getting the plain-language explanation, your deadlines, your rights, and an action checklist is completely free. If you want CareRoute to do the deeper research (verifying your doctors and drugs against each option and comparing your real costs), that is our paid Decision Support service, which is optional.

No. CareRoute does not sell insurance and does not receive commissions from any plan or insurer. We are an independent healthcare navigation service. You choose your coverage and complete your own enrollment. We help you understand the change and, if you want, research which options fit your actual healthcare needs. That independence means our only job is to give you the clearest, most honest picture.