Still time to change Medicare Advantage Plan | News | heraldbulletin.com – The Herald Bulletin

If you you don’t like the Medicare Advantage plan you’re enrolled in for this year, you can still make a change.

Medicare now has a three-month Advantage plan open enrollment period from Jan. 1 to March 31 that lets you make a one-time change to another Advantage plan or to return to original Medicare in 2022. If you return to original Medicare, you can also make a coordinating change to add Part D prescription drug coverage.

As with several other government programs, changes in your Advantage plan coverage would start the first day of the month after Medicare receives your new enrollment request. For example, if you request a change in your Advantage plan in January, your new coverage will start Feb. 1.

You can request a plan change online at www.medicare.gov/plan or by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (800-633-4227).

Medicare Medigap supplement policies might also be available if you terminate your Advantage plan and return to original Medicare during this Advantage plan open enrollment period. Medigap supplements help pay deductibles, copayments and coinsurances not covered by original Medicare.

Traditionally, you can’t have both a Medicare Advantage plan and a Medigap supplement at the same time.

Although you can apply for a Medigap supplement policy with an insurance company anytime, dropping an Advantage plan and returning to original Medicare coverage during Medicare’s Advantage plan open enrollment period doesn’t automatically let you buy a Medigap supplement with guaranteed issue rights.

That means Medigap supplement insurance companies could ask you health questions and increase your premiums, impose a waiting period for coverage of your preexisting health conditions or refuse to sell you a Medigap supplement policy based on your health history.

Therefore, in this situation, it would be important to make sure your application for a Medigap supplement policy has been approved before you cancel your Advantage plan.

If you have questions about Medicare’s Advantage plan open enrollment period, Advantage plans, Part D drug plans, Medigap supplement policies, assistance to help pay your Medicare costs, etc., contact the State Health Insurance Assistance Program at 800-452-4800, 866-846-0139 (TDD) or online at www.medicare.in.gov.

You can also find SHIP on Facebook and Twitter.

John Williams is a Medicare specialist with the State Health Insurance Assistance Program. Hoosiers can get answers to Medicare questions by calling SHIP at 800-452-4800 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.