When it comes to signing up for Medicare, you get a choice. You can stick with original Medicare, which gives you hospital care under Part A, outpatient care under Part B, and prescription drug coverage under Part D. Or, you can enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan.
There can be benefits to choosing Medicare Advantage over original Medicare, like limits on your out-of-pocket spending. And when you're on a fixed income that consists largely of Social Security, that's important.
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But the Medicare Advantage plan you start out with isn't necessarily the plan you should keep forever. And you're definitely not stuck with that plan, because each year, there's an opportunity to make changes to your coverage during fall open enrollment.
Medicare runs an open enrollment period from Oct. 15 through Dec. 7 each year. During that time, not only can you switch from one Medicare Advantage plan to another, but you can also decide to drop Medicare Advantage completely and move over to original Medicare.
If you're a Medicare Advantage enrollee, it pays to evaluate your coverage options between now and Dec. 7, even though the idea of doing so might seem overwhelming. Here are some tips for a smoother process.
1. Review your current plan's changes first
Your Medicare Advantage plan's costs and benefits can change from one year to the next year. Before you decide on a new Medicare Advantage plan for 2025, you'll need to understand what coverage you're looking at with your current plan.
In addition to benefits and costs, pay attention to whether your providers are staying in-network. If not, that's reason enough to make a switch, since it's important to retain access to doctors you trust.
2. Don't overpay for supplemental benefits
Many seniors choose Medicare Advantage over original Medicare for the supplemental benefits these plans offer. Original Medicare won't pay for dental care, eye exams, and hearing aids, whereas it's common for Medicare Advantage plans to cover not only these key services, but many others.
It's important to see what supplemental benefits are offered by the different Medicare Advantage plans you come across. But don't make the mistake of paying more for access to benefits you may not need or use.
Some Medicare Advantage plans, for example, offer meal services as a supplemental benefit. That's a nice perk, but you may need a specific diagnosis to actually get to use it. If that's not the case, you risk paying more for coverage you don't get to benefit from.
3. Look carefully at plan ratings when making your choice
Medicare has a plan finder on its site you can use to identify available Medicare Advantage plans in your area. Depending on where you live, you may get few choices or many.
If you're in the latter boat, you may want to use Medicare's star ratings system to help narrow down your options. This system gives plans anywhere from one to five stars, with five being the highest score, based on factors that include customer service, ease of accessing care, and levels of coverage.
Now you definitely don't want to sign up for a new Medicare Advantage plan solely based on its star rating. But you can use those ratings as a starting point if you're presented with a lot of choices based on your zip code.
Switching to a new Medicare Advantage plan in 2025 could make your healthcare expenses more affordable. Just as importantly, the right plan could make it easier to get the care you need. But don't wait until open enrollment is almost over to start researching plan choices. Instead, get started this month so you have plenty of time to weigh your options without stress.
