Medicare offers a number of healthcare insurance plans, and each of these has a different set of requirements and enrollment periods. The Medicare enrollment for 2020 may be different from previous years, however, as the rules change every so often. So, you may need to get updated information, and we update our pages regularly to reflect current policies and guidelines.

Original Medicare Enrollment

Let’s start with the basic plan. This is the one that most seniors will be signing up for, and it is one that many people are automatically eligible for. In many cases, you will be approved and signed up for the basic Medicare plan simply because you turned 65 years old and met the other eligibility requirements. Various health conditions affect eligible, as does your citizenship. You need to either be a full citizen or have been a permanent resident for five consecutive years in order to meet the eligibility requirements for basic Medicare.

If you were not automatically enrolled in basic Medicare when you turned 65, then you can choose to manually enroll by contacting Medicare or Social Security. The basic Medicare plan will cover you for Medicare Part A and Part B. It will provide coverage through those for many inpatient and outpatient expenses.

Medicare Supplement Enrollment

Medicare designs supplemental plans to go alongside its basic Medicare plan. These will provide coverage for what the basic Medicare plan does not cover. There are a bunch of these Supplement plans, but they all follow the same enrollment guidelines. You can only be approved for one of them and receive coverage for the plan if you have a valid Original Medicare plan. That is how closely tied the Supplement plans are to Original Medicare.

You will have to sign up for the Supplement plan through a private insurance company. These companies sell a custom lineup of the plans and offer their own rates. You can use our site to see who has the best rates and to make sure you are not overpaying for your Supplement insurance plan. You can sign up for these once you turn 65 and once you have an active original Medicare plan. If you are subscribed to Medicare, then you should already be eligible for a Supplement plan.

You can enroll for Supplement plans starting when you first sign up for Medicare Part B. You have a sixth month window from then to sign up for the plans during what is called Open Enrollment. This is the best time for your enrollment, since it is a period where you are guaranteed approval for the plan that you apply for and you are guaranteed rates that are not based on any preexisting medical conditions.

Medicare Advantage Enrollment

There is another kind of Medicare plan called Medicare Part C or Medicare Advantage. This plan will provide you with powerful coverage for all of Original Medicare and for prescription drugs, emergency services, urgently needed care and your checkups.

The Medicare enrollment 2020 period for Medicare Advantage runs from October 15^th and will end on December 7^th. You can sign up for a plan during that time if you are 65 or older. This period comes around once a year, as many seniors don’t need Advantage plans right away but may need them later on in life.

Advantage plans are sold privately, just like Supplement plans. That means that the prices are set to change and will vary from one provider to the next. You can find good rates for these plans if you use our website and source quotes here. We make it super simple to find the best rates and to get a good deal on your Advantage plan.

Advantage plans will not be compatible with many other types of medical insurance plans. If you have a Medicare Supplement or a healthcare plan from your union or your employer, then you probably have to drop that for the Advantage plan to be valid. You cannot have two overlapping plans active at the same time.

Medicare Part D Enrollment

The prescription drug plan Medicare Part D provides coverage for all sorts of medications. It can be bought on its own or be purchased as part of a Medicare Advantage plan. This coverage plan offers tiered coverage of drugs, which means that it will cover some drugs fully while others will only be covered partially.

Part D plans can be signed up for once you have a Medicare Original plan. If you have Part B, then you can sign up for Part D right away. You can sign up once you turn 65, but you cannot be approved until you have an active Part B plan, so keep that in mind. Part D is sold privately, and that means the prices change depending on who is selling it. You can use our site to see what those rates are and to find a good deal.

Enrollment Help

You may not understand fully if you are eligible for Medicare plans of any kind, and we can help with that. We can answer your questions and point you toward the plan that works best for you. We can also help you to make an informed decision and give you expert advice that will assist you in choosing the correct plan. We want you to feel good about the coverage choice you make, so please get in contact with us and let us help you find a plan that suits you well.

Medicare enrollment for 2020 isn’t much different than it was last year and the year before, but the enrollment periods can change, as can the eligibility rules. Keep checking back with us to get updates and to stay current on what your choices are and when you can enroll. This will help you be fully prepared for when it is your time to sign up. Even if you cannot enroll just yet, you can prepare yourself and pick out plans that might work well for you.