Medicare Open Enrollment: October 15 to December 7
Changing your Medicare plan? Make sure your doctor comes with you.
Once a year, people with Medicare can switch plans. Plans change their doctor networks every year too. Before you pick, call any of our six centers and we check, for free, that the plan you are considering works here.
Start Here
What do you need today?
Reviewed by the Health Service Alliance care team. Dates are for the 2026 Medicare open enrollment season. Updated October 2026.
What Medicare open enrollment is
One window a year. Changes you make now start on January 1.
From October 15 to December 7, anyone with Medicare can review their coverage and change it for the coming year. If you do nothing, your current plan usually continues, but its costs, drug list, and doctor network may still change on January 1. Your plan mails you an Annual Notice of Change in the fall that spells out exactly what is different.
- Switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan, or back
- Change from one Medicare Advantage plan to another
- Join, drop, or switch a Part D prescription drug plan
- Keep what you have: no action needed, but read your Annual Notice of Change
Why it matters for your care here
The plan you pick decides which doctors you can see. Check us before you sign.
Medicare Advantage plans each have their own network, and networks change every year. A plan that includes your doctor today may not include them next year, and a new plan with a lower premium may not include us at all. We accept Medi-Cal and Medicare at all six centers. If you are considering a Medicare Advantage plan, one phone call tells you whether we are in that plan before you commit to it.
- Medi-Cal and Medicare: accepted at all six centers
- Considering a Medicare Advantage plan: call us and we check whether we are in its network
- Medi-Cal and Medicare together: we see you, and we help with the Medi-Cal renewal paperwork
- Already our patient: bring your Annual Notice of Change to your next visit and we tell you what it means for your care here
Get Help
What do you need today?
A few quick taps, completely confidential. Answer right here on the page.
How we help, and what we leave to the experts
We are your clinic, not an insurance agent. That is on purpose.
Federal rules keep health care providers out of plan selection, and they should: your plan choice should never depend on what is good for the clinic. So we do not sell plans, recommend one plan over another, or fill out enrollment forms. What we do is give you the facts you need to decide well: whether we work with the plan you are looking at, what your current plan covers here, and what the letters you received actually mean.
For free, unbiased, one-on-one help choosing a plan, California runs HICAP, the Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program, at 1-800-434-0222. Medicare itself answers questions at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227, TTY 1-877-486-2048) and lets you compare every plan in your ZIP code at medicare.gov. Both are free, and neither one sells anything.
Have Medi-Cal and Medicare together?
Then this season touches you twice, and we help with both halves.
Many people over 65, and many people with disabilities, qualify for both Medi-Cal and Medicare. When that is you, Medi-Cal can pay Medicare costs that would otherwise come out of your pocket, and you may receive mail this fall about plans built for people who have both. Bring those letters in. We check whether the plan works here, and if your Medi-Cal renewal packet arrives in the same pile, our team completes it with you at no cost so the coverage does not lapse.
On Medicare and finding money tight? Ask us to check whether you qualify for Medi-Cal alongside it. The check is free and takes a few minutes.
Key dates
The 2026 season, and the one safety net after it.
- October 15, 2026: Medicare open enrollment begins
- December 7, 2026: last day to make changes for 2027
- January 1, 2027: new coverage and plan changes take effect
- January 1 to March 31, 2027: Medicare Advantage open enrollment, one chance to change if you are in an Advantage plan and it is not working out
- Not on Medicare? Covered California open enrollment runs November 1 to January 31, and Medi-Cal enrolls year-round. We help with Medi-Cal applications free, any day of the year.
What to have ready when you call or visit
None of it is required. All of it speeds things up.
- Your red, white, and blue Medicare card
- Your current plan card, if you are in a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan
- The Annual Notice of Change letter your plan mailed you
- The name of any plan you are thinking about switching to
- Your Medi-Cal card or renewal packet, if you have one
- A list of your medications, which HICAP will ask for when comparing drug coverage
We accept Medi-Cal, Medicare, and most plans
No insurance, or not sure what you have? You are still welcome, and our team helps you apply for Medi-Cal.
Sliding-fee scale available based on household income.
- Medi-Cal and Medicare welcomeAlong with IEHP and most major plans.
- Free coverage checkWe confirm your plan on the phone, at no cost.
- Sliding-fee scaleCosts adjusted to your income when you are uninsured.
- We help you apply for Medi-CalFree enrollment and renewal help, at any center.
Frequently Asked Questions
Straight answers to the questions we hear most. Anything else? Call us during business hours.
Do you accept Medicare?
Yes. We accept Medi-Cal and Medicare at all six centers, including patients who carry both. If you are in a Medicare Advantage plan, or thinking about one, call and we check that specific plan before your visit or before you switch.
Can you tell me which Medicare plan to pick?
No, and that protects you. Federal rules keep clinics out of plan selection so your choice is never shaped by what suits the provider. We give you the facts about our network and your coverage here. For a recommendation, HICAP counselors at 1-800-434-0222 do exactly that, free and with no sales involved.
I like my plan. Do I need to do anything?
Usually not; most plans renew on their own. Still read the Annual Notice of Change your plan mailed you, because premiums, copays, drug lists, and doctor networks can all change on January 1 even when you stay put. If anything in it mentions network changes, call us.
What if I switch and then find out you are not in my new plan?
If you are in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one more chance to change between January 1 and March 31. The simpler path is to call us before December 7, while you can still compare plans and confirm which ones include your doctor here.
I missed December 7. Am I stuck for a year?
Often, but not always. Some situations open a special enrollment period during the year, including moving, losing other coverage, and, for people who have Medi-Cal alongside Medicare, certain plan changes during the year. Call 1-800-MEDICARE to ask about your situation, and keep seeing us in the meantime.
Is this the same as Covered California open enrollment?
No. Covered California is for people who do not have Medicare and do not have affordable coverage through work, and its window runs November 1 to January 31. Medi-Cal has no window at all; you can apply any day, and our team helps with the application for free.
Your family deserves good care, close to home.
Call us to get seen, or check which plans we take. Medi-Cal and most plans accepted, and nobody is turned away for inability to pay.