Never Auto-Renew Your Medicare Plan Without Checking This

#medicareenrollment #medicare -#medicareexpert
Medicare Open Enrollment runs October 15 through December 7, 2026. The plan you keep — or the plan you pick — is your coverage starting January 1, 2027.

This video walks through the big mistake a lot of us make: leaving last year’s card in the wallet and assuming the doctors, drugs, and prices stay the same. The name on the card can stay the same. The plan underneath it can change.

We go slow on purpose. We cover:

• The fall window (Oct 15–Dec 7) versus the smaller January–March Advantage-only window
• Original Medicare versus Medicare Advantage, in plain English
• Why a $0 premium is not the same as the cheapest year
• 2027 Part D numbers that are already final: deductible up to $700, $2,400 cap on covered drugs, then $0 for the rest of the year on those covered drugs
• What that $2,400 cap does *not* include (your monthly premium, and drugs not on the plan)
• Why October is not a national “buy Medigap with no health questions” month
• IRMAA (the extra charge tied to your 2025 tax return), Extra Help, and the SSA-44 form if your income dropped
• A simple checklist you can finish at the kitchen table

Please verify every number for your own plan. Official pages are listed below.

────────────
CHAPTERS
0:00 The Oct 15–Dec 7 window
0:41 Four things to keep straight
1:32 The fall calendar (AEP)
2:21 The January–March Advantage window
3:00 Medigap is on a different clock
3:48 Original Medicare, in plain English
4:38 What Medicare Advantage actually is
5:35 Mistake 1: Shopping by the monthly premium
6:33 Mistake 2: Skipping your drug list
7:52 Mistake 3: Assuming your doctors stayed
8:55 Mistake 4: Leaving Advantage with no Medigap
9:34 Mistake 5: IRMAA, Extra Help, and penalties
10:45 The 7-step kitchen-table checklist
12:00 Finish by December 7


────────────
WHERE TO CHECK THIS YOURSELF

Official Medicare site
https://www.medicare.gov

Open Enrollment dates and what you can change
https://www.medicare.gov/health-drug-plans/open-enrollment

Compare 2027 Advantage and Part D plans (Plan Finder)
https://www.medicare.gov/plan-compare

Medicare & You handbook
https://www.medicare.gov/medicare-and-you

Medigap (Medicare Supplement) basics and guaranteed-issue rules
https://www.medicare.gov/health-drug-plans/medigap

Part D costs, deductible, and the yearly cap
https://www.medicare.gov/health-drug-plans/part-d/basics/costs

IRMAA (higher Part B and Part D premiums if income is over the limit)
https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/increase-due-to-income

Apply for Extra Help with drug costs
https://www.ssa.gov/extrahelp
https://www.ssa.gov/medicare/prescriptionhelp

Ask Social Security to lower IRMAA after a life change (Form SSA-44)
https://www.ssa.gov/forms/ssa-44.pdf
https://www.ssa.gov/medicare/lower-irmaa

Find free, unbiased help in your state (SHIP)
https://www.shiphelp.org

Call Medicare (24/7)
1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227)
TTY: 1-877-486-2048

Social Security (Part A / Part B enrollment and Extra Help)
https://www.ssa.gov

CMS newsroom (official Part B / IRMAA announcement, usually November)
https://www.cms.gov/newsroom

Medicare Savings Programs (help with Part B premiums — apply through your state)
https://www.medicare.gov/basics/costs/help/medicare-savings-programs

DISCLAIMER

This video is for general education only. It is not insurance advice, tax advice, legal advice, or an enrollment. We are not affiliated with the U.S. government, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, or CMS.

2027 Part A and Part B premiums and deductibles mentioned here are Medicare Trustees estimates until CMS publishes the official figures, usually in November 2026. 2027 Part D figures used here — maximum deductible $700, out-of-pocket cap $2,400 on covered Part D drugs, and $41.33 base beneficiary premium — are CMS figures that were already set. Your own plan’s premium, copays, network, and drug list can be different.

The $2,400 cap applies to counted out-of-pocket spending on drugs your Part D or Advantage drug coverage actually covers. Monthly premiums do not count toward that cap. Drugs that are not on the formulary generally do not count.

Fall Open Enrollment lets many people change Advantage or Part D plans, or move between Advantage and Original Medicare. It does not automatically give everyone the right to buy a Medigap policy with no health questions. Medigap guaranteed-issue rules depend on your situation and your state.

Always confirm your doctors, drugs, costs, and deadlines on Medicare.gov, with 1-800-MEDICARE, with SHIP, or with your plan. When in doubt, get help before December 7. The plan must receive your request by that date.

If this helped, send it to a friend or a sibling who still thinks “I’ll just keep what I have.” Keeping what you have is still a choice — and the plan can change underneath the same card.