When Is Medicare Open Enrollment?

Medicare open enrollment occurs from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7 each year. During open enrollment, existing Medicare plan members are allowed to make changes to their coverage, such as joining a new prescription drug plan, dropping a current Medicare Advantage plan or switching from Medicare Part C to Original Medicare.

Keep reading to learn how Medicare open enrollment works — whether you sign up through the federal government or a private insurance company — and when you can enroll in various types of health insurance plans.

On This Page

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  Types of Health Insurance and Medicare Enrollment Periods

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  What Can I Do During Medicare Open Enrollment?

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  Are There Penalties for Late Medicare Enrollment?

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  Are There New Medicare Plans for 2026?

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  Is It Worth Changing My Medicare Plan Style?

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  Is There an Automatic Medicare Reenrollment Process?

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  How To Sign Up for Medicare During the Open Enrollment Period

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  FAQs

Types of Health Insurance and Medicare Enrollment Periods

There are several different health insurance enrollment periods, during which you can sign up for Medicare or another type of health plan. The following table provides an overview of the various enrollment deadlines that apply to Medicare beneficiaries.

Some other types of health insurance also use open enrollment periods. For example, private coverage from the Health Insurance Marketplace is available during the annual enrollment period from Nov. 1 to Jan. 15. Conversely, eligible low-income families can sign up for public coverage through Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) year-round.^[5]

What Can I Do During Medicare Open Enrollment?

In general, Medicare plan members can take the following actions during open enrollment each year:^[2]

• Join a Medicare Advantage plan for the first time, drop an existing Medicare Advantage plan or switch from one Medicare Advantage plan to another
• Add prescription drug coverage to or drop prescription drug coverage from a Medicare Advantage plan
• Switch from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare or vice versa
• Join a standalone prescription drug plan, drop an existing prescription drug plan or switch from one prescription drug plan to another (only if you’re covered by Original Medicare)

Are There Penalties for Late Medicare Enrollment?

You may have to pay a higher premium for Medicare Part A (hospital insurance), Part B (medical insurance) and Part D (Medicare prescription drug coverage) if you sign up for them after your initial enrollment period. However, there is no late enrollment penalty for Medicare Part C (Medicare Advantage). The following table outlines the late enrollment penalties you can expect for the various parts of Medicare.^[6]

Keep in mind that Medicare Part A is free for most Americans.^[6] Individuals who are eligible for premium-free coverage may be automatically enrolled — and if not, they won’t have to pay a penalty if they opt to enroll late.^[7] Meanwhile, if you are covered by a group health insurance plan through your employer or your spouse’s employer past the age of 65, you can sign up for Part B without penalty whenever your work-based coverage ends.^[8]

Are There New Medicare Plans for 2026?

Several changes to Medicare Advantage plans will take effect in 2026. For example, the prices of certain prescription drugs will decrease under the new rates negotiated by Medicare and participating drug companies. The out-of-pocket maximum for Medicare Part D will be $2,100 in 2026, meaning Medicare will cover 100% of medication costs after you or an assistance program — such as Extra Help — spends $2,100 out of pocket.^[9]

In addition, Medicare Advantage providers will be required to send midyear updates beginning in 2026, notifying members about any unused or underutilized supplemental benefits available to them.^[10]

Is It Worth Changing My Medicare Plan Style?

Whether you would benefit from changing your Medicare plan type depends on your specific coverage requirements and budget. Consider the following factors when deciding whether a different type of Medicare plan would better suit your needs:^[11]

1. Whether your current plan provides an appropriate amount of coverage: For example, Original Medicare does not include routine dental or vision coverage, but most Medicare Advantage plans do.^[12] As a result, it may be worth switching to Medicare Advantage if you want claims for your dental, vision and medical care to be covered under the same plan.
2. Whether you can afford your current plan’s premiums and out-of-pocket costs: For example, suppose you don’t take any prescription medicines and have minimal expected health care needs. In this case, it may not make sense to pay extra for a Medicare Advantage plan with more benefits than you need, meaning you may be better off sticking to Original Medicare.
3. Whether you can visit your preferred doctors, hospitals and pharmacies: Medicare Advantage health maintenance organization (HMO) plans only cover care you receive from providers in the plan’s network, so it’s important to check each plan’s network to make sure it will cover treatments from your favorite health care providers. Alternatively, you can opt for a preferred provider organization (PPO) plan, which costs more but allows you to visit out-of-network providers without restrictions.

Is There an Automatic Medicare Reenrollment Process?

Once you’ve enrolled in a Medicare plan, it will generally renew itself automatically as long as you keep paying your premiums, which means you won’t need to track Medicare open enrollment dates and manually reenroll. The only exceptions are if your insurance company stops offering the type of Medicare plan you have or if the federal government cancels its contract with your insurance carrier.^[13]

Even if your policy renews itself, it’s important to remember that the cost of your plan and the benefits it provides could change from year to year. For this reason, it can be helpful to review policy changes and determine whether your plan still meets your needs when you receive the plan’s Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) letter each fall.^[13]

How To Sign Up for Medicare During the Open Enrollment Period

You can sign up for Original Medicare coverage online or over the phone through the Social Security Administration (SSA). You’ll need to provide information like your Social Security number (SSN), where you were born, your current health insurance information and your email address. Generally, your Original Medicare premiums are deducted from your Social Security benefits, so you may not have to make manual premium payments.^[14]

If you’re interested in Medicare Part C, you can compare rates from private insurance companies using an insurance marketplace, like SmartFinancial. We’ll take you through a simple questionnaire about your coverage needs and then share your information with agents who can help you find the best policies in your area. Click here to insert your ZIP code and start comparing Medicare Advantage quotes for free today!