Missing your Initial Enrollment Period for Part A or B of Medicare can mean late enrollment penalties or losing out on guaranteed issue rights. For example, we have seen folks that have fully enrolled in Medicare and remain on work coverage. Later, they decide to suspend Part B. This can complicate your plan options when you retire and leave employer coverage.

Just because one plan is cheaper than the other plan options doesn’t mean it is the lowest cost option for you. Blind spots like network restrictions, copays, and coverage gaps can add up quickly. Knowing how these gaps will impact your healthcare individually is important. A cheap plan may look great on paper but functionally may not be the best fit for your healthcare needs.

Switching plans for the marketing hype and not checking networks and prescriptions can be a costly mistake. If your doctors are out of network or your prescriptions are off formulary that can have real out-of-pocket impact on your healthcare costs or cause you to find a new provider. Most frequently we see these mistake rise after the fact when someone comes to us to fit a problem. Usually, these problems start with a call to a call center for a phone enrollment or from seeing an agent who is captive and only services one insurance carrier.

Outside of the Annual Open Enrollment period or your Initial Enrollment period switching plans comes with a specific set of rules and regulations. Sometimes switching may require underwriting. Sometimes switching may be limited to special circumstance you may not qualify for. Don’t switch a plan thinking “I’ll just kick the tires” and assume you can undo your choice without receiving proper professional guidance first.

Plans, premiums, and prescription formularies change annually. What worked or was the best fit last year might not be the best for the upcoming year. Reviewing coverage annually during the Annual Enrollment Period can help spot these changes before they cost you. At Senior Legacy Partners we offer zero obligation plan review. Give us a call and we’ll look at your options.

National advertising often promotes plans that might not even be available to you e.g. D-SNP or C-SNP plans or might not even be available in your area. Often these ads rely on hype rather than an explanation of plan mechanics that affect how your healthcare functions. Using a local independent broker like Senior Legacy Partners helps ensure your plan is doing what you want when you need it. That in-depth analysis is not going to happen when you pick a plan based on the marketing hype.