How to Switch Medicare Advantage Plans: Windows and Steps

To switch Medicare Advantage plans, join the new plan during an allowed enrollment period. Medicare says that when you switch to a new Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage or a drug plan by joining it during an allowed period, your old coverage ends when your new coverage begins, so you don't need to cancel your old plan. The main windows are Open Enrollment (October 15 to December 7), the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (January 1 to March 31), and Special Enrollment Periods tied to certain situations. This guide covers each window, what to check before you switch, and the Texas rules that matter if you go back to Original Medicare.

Key takeaways

• You can join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage Plan only at certain times, called enrollment periods.
• If you join a new Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage or a drug plan during an allowed period, your old coverage ends when the new coverage begins. Your new plan sends a letter with your start date.
• For Open Enrollment changes, the plan must get your request by December 7, and new coverage starts January 1.
• The January to March window is only for people already in a Medicare Advantage Plan. You get one change.
• Leaving Medicare Advantage for Original Medicare doesn't always mean you can buy a Medigap policy. In Texas, outside certain windows, your health history can affect whether a company sells you one.

How does switching Medicare Advantage plans work?

You switch by joining another plan during a period when you're allowed to. Medicare says that when you switch to a new Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage or a drug plan this way, your old coverage ends when your new coverage begins, and you don't need to cancel your old plan.

Here's an example. During Open Enrollment you're in a Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage, and you join a new Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage. The new plan sends you a letter confirming your start date. On that date, your current plan ends and the new plan begins. You don't need to call your current plan.

When can you switch Medicare Advantage plans?

Open Enrollment begins October 15. Changes you make between then and December 7 take effect January 1. December 7 is the date the plan must have your request, not the date to mail it. Our open enrollment dates guide lists the windows side by side.

Two common errors about the January to March window

Here's what the January to March window does and doesn't allow:

• You can't use it to move from Original Medicare into Medicare Advantage. You also can't use it to join a drug plan or switch drug plans while you're in Original Medicare.
• It isn't limited to people who joined in the fall. You qualify if you're already in a Medicare Advantage Plan, no matter how or when you joined.

How should you read your Annual Notice of Change?

Your plan sends a Plan Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) each fall, usually in September. It lists changes to coverage, costs, and more that take effect in January. Medicare says to use it to decide whether the plan still meets your needs.

1. Find it. If you didn't get one, contact your plan.
2. Read the cost changes. Note anything that changes what you pay.
3. Read the coverage changes. Look for changes to the benefits and drugs you use.
4. Compare against your own list. Check your prescriptions, doctors, and pharmacies against the new terms.
5. Decide. Medicare says to review the changes to decide whether the plan will still meet your needs next year. If it won't, compare other plans before December 7.

For a section-by-section walkthrough, see how to read your Medicare Annual Notice of Change.

What should you check before you switch?

Medicare suggests these checks before you join a plan:

• Prescriptions and benefits. Confirm the plan covers your drugs and the benefits you need.
• Doctors and pharmacies. Ask each doctor's office and pharmacy if it's in the plan's network.
• Costs. Review premiums, deductibles, and estimated yearly drug costs in Medicare Plan Finder at Medicare.gov/plan-compare. These amounts change every year, so use current figures from there.
• Other coverage. If you have employer, union, or other coverage, talk to your benefits administrator first.
• Time in another state. If you live in another state part of the year, check how the plan covers you there.

Medicare Advantage plans vary by area. Our guide to Medicare Advantage plans by Texas county explains why. For a full fall review, use our Medicare open enrollment checklist.

How do you enroll in a new Medicare Advantage plan?

1. Compare plans at Medicare.gov/plan-compare using your drugs, pharmacies, and doctors.
2. Pick one way to enroll:
   • Select "Enroll" on Medicare.gov/plan-compare.
   • Contact the plan by phone or on its website. If you use a paper form, it must reach the plan before your enrollment period ends.
   • Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227; TTY 1-877-486-2048).
3. Watch for the confirmation letter from your new plan. It shows your start date.
4. Keep your old plan until then. If your new plan is a Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage or a drug plan, Medicare says your old coverage ends when the new coverage begins.

What happens to your drug coverage when you switch?

How your drug coverage changes depends on where you move.

Moving to a Medicare Advantage Plan without drug coverage

If you use the 5-star Special Enrollment Period to move from a plan with drug coverage to a 5-star Medicare Advantage Plan without drug coverage, you may lose drug coverage until your next enrollment chance and may owe a Part D late enrollment penalty. In any situation, the penalty may apply if you go 63 or more days in a row without Medicare drug coverage or other creditable drug coverage.

Joining a stand-alone Medicare drug plan

If you're in a Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage and you join a stand-alone drug plan, you're disenrolled from the Medicare Advantage Plan. That includes its health coverage. You go back to Original Medicare for your health care.

How the Part D late enrollment penalty works

The penalty may apply if you go 63 or more days in a row without Medicare drug coverage or other creditable drug coverage. Once added, it stays on your drug premium for good. The amount changes, so check Medicare.gov/basics/costs/medicare-costs/avoid-penalties. Our guide on how to compare Medicare Part D plans covers drug plans in more detail.

Which Special Enrollment Periods let you switch at other times?

You move out of your plan's service area

You can switch to a new Medicare Advantage Plan or drug plan, or go back to Original Medicare. The window starts the month you move, or the month before if you tell your plan ahead of time. It lasts 2 full months after you move. If you don't join a new plan, you'll be put in Original Medicare when your old plan drops you.

Your plan's contract isn't renewed

If your Medicare Advantage Plan's contract with Medicare isn't renewed, you can switch from December 8 to the last day of February of the next year. If you don't join another Medicare Advantage Plan before your current plan ends, you'll be put in Original Medicare.

You leave employer or union coverage

When employer or union coverage ends (including COBRA), you can join a Medicare Advantage Plan or drug plan for 2 full months after the month that coverage ends. If your employer or union offers other coverage, you can drop your Medicare Advantage Plan to join it whenever the employer or union allows.

You have Medicare and Medicaid, or Extra Help

Once a calendar month, you can switch drug plans. You can also drop a Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage and go back to Original Medicare with a stand-alone drug plan. Changes start the first day of the next month. This option isn't open to anyone flagged as "at-risk" under a Part D drug management program.

If you have full Medicaid benefits, you can also join or switch to an integrated Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan (D-SNP) once a calendar month, if one is available. Not all D-SNPs are integrated.

Star ratings

• 5-star plans. If a 5-star Medicare Advantage, drug, or Cost plan is available where you live, you can switch to it once between December 8 and November 30 of the next year.
• Plans rated low for 3 years. If your plan has been rated below 3 stars for the last 3 years, you can switch to another Medicare Advantage or drug plan any time you're in it.

Network changes and misleading information

A significant change in your plan's provider network may qualify you for a Special Enrollment Period. So may joining a plan based on misleading or incorrect information from a plan representative or SHIP. Medicare decides these case by case. For other unusual situations, call 1-800-MEDICARE.

Can you go back to Original Medicare and get a Medigap policy?

You can leave Medicare Advantage for Original Medicare during the windows above. Buying a Medicare supplement (Medigap) policy afterward is a separate question.

Your one-time Medigap open enrollment

The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) says you get a one-time, six-month Medicare supplement open enrollment period that starts when you enroll in Part B. It's the only time companies must sell you a policy no matter your health history. After that, you might not be able to buy one if you have a preexisting condition. TDI also says the annual Medicare open enrollment period doesn't apply to Medicare supplement plans.

The 12-month trial period

Medicare gives you a "trial period" if either of these is true:

• You joined a Medicare Advantage Plan when you were first eligible at 65.
• You dropped a Medigap policy to join a Medicare Advantage Plan for the first time.

You can drop the plan within 12 months of first joining, go back to Original Medicare, and have special rights to buy a Medigap policy.

Texas guaranteed issue when your plan ends

In Texas, if your Medicare Advantage plan ends, it must give you written notice of your options and how long you have to buy a Medicare supplement policy. Keep that notice. It's your proof to the Medicare supplement company that you have the right to buy.

This right lasts 63 days from the date your coverage ends or the date of the notice that it will end, whichever is later. Companies can't add preexisting condition waiting periods or exclusions to these policies. This right applies only to certain Medicare supplement plans, which depend on when you first became eligible for Medicare and whether you're under 65. You must give the company proof that you lost coverage. Check with TDI for the list of plans that apply to you. For rule changes, check with TDI directly.

Our guide to Medicare Advantage vs. Medigap compares the two paths.

What Texas rules and free help should you know about?

• No free look for Medicare Advantage. TDI says the 30-day "free look" period doesn't apply to Medicare Advantage. If you drop a Medicare supplement policy to join Medicare Advantage, you may not be able to get it back.
• Free counseling. The Texas Health Information, Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP) is the state's SHIP. You can reach it through the Texas Medicare Help Line at 800-252-9240. Counselors offer free help comparing Medicare Advantage, Medigap, and Part D plans, plus help with enrollment and disenrollment.
• License checks. You can verify a company or agent license by calling the TDI Help Line at 800-252-3439. TDI also says to be suspicious if an agent tries to rush you. See how to verify a Texas insurance agent license and what an NPN is.

What agents can and can't do

Medicare says independent agents and brokers who sell Medicare plans must be licensed by the state. During a meeting, they can't charge an enrollment fee, steer you into a plan, call their plan "the best," or pressure you. Sign an enrollment form only when you're ready.

What if you picked the wrong plan or were misled?

If you think you chose the wrong plan because of wrong or misleading information, including from Plan Finder, call 1-800-MEDICARE and explain what happened. Representatives can help with options for making changes during the year.

If you're already in a Medicare Advantage Plan, you can also use the January to March window for one change. If you joined when first eligible at 65, the 12-month trial period may apply.

Common mistakes when switching

• Calling to cancel your old plan. When you join a new Medicare Advantage Plan with drug coverage or a drug plan during an allowed period, Medicare says you don't need to. Your old coverage ends when the new coverage begins.
• Signing up for more than one plan. Each new enrollment can end your current coverage. For example, joining a stand-alone drug plan ends your Medicare Advantage Plan, including its health coverage.
• Assuming Medigap is easy to get later. In Texas, outside your open enrollment period or a guaranteed issue right, you might not be able to buy a policy if you have a preexisting condition.
• Skipping the drug and pharmacy check. Confirm every prescription and every pharmacy before you enroll.
• Missing December 7. The plan must have your request by then.
• Setting aside a non-renewal notice. It explains your options and deadlines, and in Texas it's your proof to a Medicare supplement company of your right to buy.
• Joining before checking with your employer. Talk to your benefits administrator first if you have other coverage.

What to do next

1. Read your ANOC and list what's changing.
2. Write down your drugs, doses, pharmacies, and doctors.
3. Compare plans at Medicare.gov/plan-compare, or call 1-800-MEDICARE.
4. For free counseling in Texas, call HICAP through the Texas Medicare Help Line at 800-252-9240.
5. Enroll in time for your window, and watch for your new plan's letter.

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