Medicare, explained without the sales pitch.

Start with the big questions

Each guide answers one question properly, shows its sources, and carries the date it was last reviewed.

If something has already gone wrong

Most Medicare questions are not asked out of curiosity. They are asked because a letter arrived, or a doctor's office said something unexpected. These three guides deal with what to do next.

• My Medicare Advantage plan is being discontinued A non-renewal opens two rights, not one: a Special Enrollment Period, and a window to buy Medigap with no health questions asked. The second expires 63 days after your coverage ends and does not come back.
• My doctor left my plan's network A network change mid-year does not create a Special Enrollment Period — but continuity of care, out-of-network authorisations and the 5-star window may still be open to you. What to ask, and who to ask.
• How to switch back to Original Medicare The windows, the disenrollment mechanics, and why the Medigap application has to come before you drop the plan rather than after.

Costs and coverage people ask about most

Two questions that shape whether Medicare actually fits your budget and your care.

• What is the cheapest Medicare plan on a fixed income? The biggest saving is rarely a specific plan — it's a Medicare Savings Program, Extra Help or Medicaid eligibility check that most people never make.
• Does Medicare cover dental, vision and hearing? Original Medicare covers almost none of it. What the narrow exceptions are, and what a Medicare Advantage plan's benefit actually promises.

Three things worth knowing before you choose

• A $0 premium is not the same as $0 cost. You still pay your Part B premium every month, plus copays and coinsurance when you actually use care. A $0 premium describes the plan's own charge, not your total cost of coverage.
• Your doctors matter more than the brochure. Before comparing benefits, check whether the people you already see are in the plan's network. Networks also change from year to year, which is why the notice your plan sends each September is worth reading.
• The first choice is easier to make than to undo. Moving from Medicare Advantage back to Original Medicare with a Medigap policy can involve medical underwriting, depending on your state and your timing. In many states an insurer can then decline you or charge more.

Where our information comes from

Medicare rules, premiums and plan details are set by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and change every year. We publish the review date on every guide and update pages when new figures are released. Where a number for the coming plan year has not been published yet, we say so rather than estimate it.

For official information covering every option available to you, including plans we do not offer, see Medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE.

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