Medicare AEP checklist 2026: 9 steps before Dec 7

Before the window opens

1. Read the ANOC — the envelope marked "Important"

Plans must mail an Annual Notice of Change by the end of September. It lists exactly what changes in your current plan for 2027: premium, deductible, copays, and — most importantly — whether your drugs or doctors are still covered. It's dry, but it's the single most useful document you'll get. Skim the premium and drug-formulary sections at minimum.

2. List your actual costs from this year

Grab your Explanation of Benefits statements (or just your memory of the pharmacy receipts) and write down what you really paid: premiums, the drug costs at your pharmacy, the specialist copays. Comparing plans by premium alone is the classic mistake — a $0-premium plan with a $95 specialist copay can cost a treated patient more than a $70 plan with a $15 copay.

During the window (October 15 – December 7)

3. Check whether your drugs still cost the same

Formularies change every year: a drug can move to a higher tier, need prior authorization, or drop off entirely. For each medication, check it against any plan you're considering — the plan finder on medicare.gov prices your exact list at your own pharmacy.

4. Confirm your doctors and hospitals are still in network

Networks narrow. Call the doctor's office or check the plan's provider directory before switching — not after. A plan your specialist doesn't take is a worse plan at any price.

5. Compare the true total, not the sticker

For each candidate plan: annual premium + deductible you'll actually hit + the copays your conditions generate + your drug costs at your pharmacy. That's the only number that means anything. Our plan changes tool shows what changed in your plan for 2027; the what-changed guide gives the nationwide picture.

6. Know when NOT to switch

If your drugs, doctors, and costs are essentially unchanged, doing nothing is a valid, often correct choice — your plan renews automatically. Also know what AEP is not: it can't be used to buy a Medigap plan for the first time at standard pricing (that has its own enrollment windows), and dropping drug coverage entirely can carry a late-enrollment penalty later.

7. Ignore the pressure, sign up through official channels

Fall is telemarketing season. Anyone who calls you pitching a plan, asks for your Medicare number over the phone, or says you must "re-register" is a red flag. If a plan sounded interesting, find it yourself on medicare.gov or through your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) — free, unbiased counseling.

After you decide

8. Enroll early in the window, keep the confirmation

Don't wait for the Dec 7 rush — enrollment volume makes November the safe month. When you enroll (online, by phone at 1-800-MEDICARE, or through the plan directly), save the confirmation number. If anything goes wrong, that number is your proof.

9. In January: check the first EOB and remember the escape hatch

When 2027 coverage starts, verify the first Explanation of Benefits matches what you expected. If you joined a Medicare Advantage plan and regret it, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (January 1 – March 31, 2027) lets you switch MA plans or return to Original Medicare once.

Putting it together: the checklist fits on one page. ANOC read, real costs listed, drugs priced, doctors confirmed, totals compared, decision made or consciously skipped, confirmation saved. The whole thing is an afternoon — most of it waiting on hold music of your own choosing.