Annual Open Enrollment for Medicare Part D

Seniors may want to consider reviewing their Part D Medicare Plan, the Prescription Drug Plan in which they are enrolled.  The annual open enrollment period changed this year; it began October 15 and ends on December 7. That’s three weeks earlier than previous years’ deadline.  So from now until December 7, you can enroll (if you are not already enrolled) and you can change your plan.  The least you should do is review what you have now and be sure it’s the best option for you.

You can find information online that helps you evaluate your plan and consider others.  This Medicare page online gets you started with Part D plans that are available in your locale. Once you begin the process with your zip code, you will find the plans that are offered in the area in which you live in your state.  Plans vary from state to state, and within various regions in a state. For example, I entered my zip code and then followed the instructions to enter information about my medications and local pharmacy.  That took me to the page where I can now identify what is most important to me in a prescription drug plan.  Here are the options:

• Limit Your Monthly Premium
• Limit Your Annual Drug Deductible
• Select Drug Options
• Select Plan Ratings
• Select Coverage Options
• Select Special Needs Plans
• Change Health Status
• Select Plans By Company

Online Internet Help for Selecting a Medicare Part D Plan

I selected all the options that were important to me, like keeping my monthly premium low and being sure my medications were on the plan formulary.  Once I did that, 62 different plans popped up on my monitor and I began to look at each of them, comparing them with my current plan to figure out whether or not I needed to think about changing to a new plan.

The website makes the process easy, and it is highly possible many of you seniors could find a plan that is less costly for you in terms of monthly premium, co-pays and deductibles.  Give it a try!