Your Dec. 7 Checklist: 5 Things to Check Before Medicare Open Enrollment Ends

By now, the fall Medicare mail has probably piled up on the kitchen counter: plan booklets, postcards, maybe a letter or two you set aside for “later.” And the TV ads are running nonstop.

Here’s the good news. You don’t have to read every piece of it, and you don’t have to switch plans just because it’s that time of year. But you do want to make a decision on purpose, not by default. This simple five-step checklist will help you do exactly that before the deadline.

This article is educational only and is not personalized Medicare advice.

First, a quick word on timing

Medicare’s Annual Enrollment Period (AEP), which Medicare.gov calls the Open Enrollment Period, runs from Thursday, October 15 through Monday, December 7, 2026. Your plan must receive your request by December 7, and any change you make takes effect January 1, 2027.

If you do nothing, most people simply stay in the plan they have now, with whatever changes the plan announced for 2027. Sometimes that’s perfectly fine. Sometimes it’s how people wake up in January to a higher drug bill or a doctor who’s no longer in network.

Myth: “If my plan worked this year, I’m all set.”

Maybe, maybe not. Plans can change from year to year even when the name on the card stays exactly the same. And 2027 has some real changes worth a closer look, especially on the drug side. That’s what this checklist is for.

Your 5-step Dec. 7 checklist

1. Read your Annual Notice of Change

If you’re in a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan, your plan sent you an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) in September. It’s not junk mail. It’s your plan’s “here’s what’s different next year” letter, covering premiums, copays, drug coverage, and networks.

Grab a highlighter and look for anything that changes your cost, your medications, or your access to care. If you can’t find yours, call the member services number on the back of your ID card and ask for a copy.

2. Make sure your doctors and hospitals are still in network

Network changes are easy to miss until you need an appointment. Make a short list of your primary care doctor, the specialists you see regularly, and the hospital you’d want to go to. Then confirm each one is in your plan’s network for 2027. A quick call to the doctor’s office (“Will you be in network with my plan next year?”) is one of the best five-minute investments you can make.

3. Run your prescriptions through a plan comparison

This is where we see the most surprises. Write down every medication you take, with the dose and how often, plus your pharmacy. Then compare plans using Medicare’s Plan Finder at Medicare.gov/plan-compare, or let a licensed broker do it with you.

For a full video walkthrough, I show you how at: How to Research Medicare Part D Plans | Step-by-Step Walkthrough

You will look for:

• Coverage. Is each drug still on the plan’s drug list for 2027?
• Tiers. A drug moving to a higher tier usually means a higher copay.
• Rules. Prior authorization, step therapy, or quantity limits can be new.
• Pharmacy. Is your usual pharmacy still “preferred”? Where you fill a prescription can change what you pay.

Two numbers to know for 2027:

• The deductible cap is going up. No Medicare drug plan can have a deductible higher than $700 in 2027, up from $615 in 2026. Some plans have no deductible at all.
• The yearly out-of-pocket cap is going up too. Once your out-of-pocket spending on covered Part D drugs reaches $2,400 in 2027 (up from $2,100), you pay nothing more for covered drugs for the rest of the year.

If you have a standalone drug plan, pay close attention to the premium. KFF’s analysis found there will be no $0-premium standalone drug plans in 2027 for people who don’t get Extra Help, and some enrollees will see much bigger increases than others if they stay put.

4. Look at the extras that may have changed

Dental, vision, hearing, over-the-counter allowances, fitness memberships, and rides to appointments are a big reason many people choose Medicare Advantage. For 2027, industry analyses found that many plans trimmed these extras, with dental allowances among the most common cuts.

Check the benefits you actually use. If your dental allowance dropped and you have a crown coming up, that matters. If the gym benefit changed but you’ve never used it, it may not. Value the extras you’ll use; don’t let shiny extras you’ll never touch make the decision for you.

5. Add up your total costs, not just the premium

A $0 premium is nice, but it’s only one piece of the picture. To see what a plan may really cost you in 2027, look at:

• The monthly plan premium
• Deductibles (medical and drug)
• Copays for doctor visits, specialists, labs, and hospital stays
• Your estimated yearly drug costs
• The maximum out-of-pocket limit (MOOP), the most you’d pay in a bad year for covered medical care

On the income side, Social Security announced a 3.6% cost-of-living increase starting in January 2027. Medicare has not yet announced the 2027 Part B premium, so watch Medicare.gov and your my Social Security account later this fall for your new amounts.

Have a Medicare Supplement? Your main job is your drug plan

If you have Original Medicare with a Medicare Supplement (Medigap) policy, fall enrollment is mostly about your Part D drug plan. Run your prescriptions through a comparison and check your premium, especially given the 2027 drug plan changes above.

One word of caution: please don’t drop a Supplement casually. Outside your first Medigap enrollment window and certain special situations, there’s no federal guarantee an insurance company will sell you a policy, and you may be asked health questions. Talk it through with a licensed broker first.

Missed something? There’s a safety net, but don’t count on it

If you’re in a Medicare Advantage plan, there’s a second window from January 1 through March 31, 2027, called the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period. During that time, you can switch to another Medicare Advantage plan, or drop your plan and go back to Original Medicare (and join a separate drug plan). A change made then starts the first of the month after the plan gets your request.

It’s a helpful backup, but it’s not a do-over for everyone. It’s only for people already in a Medicare Advantage plan, and it’s much easier to get things right by December 7.

The grass isn’t always greener

After more than 25 years of helping folks with Medicare, here’s what we’ve learned: switching isn’t always the answer. If your doctors are in network, your drugs are covered at a fair price, and your costs still fit your budget, staying put is a perfectly good decision. Continuity has real value, especially if you’re managing a health condition or seeing specialists.

The point of a review isn’t to change plans. It’s to know your plan still fits before January 1.

The bottom line

Annual Enrollment ends Monday, December 7, 2026. Changes start January 1, 2027.

Read your ANOC, check your doctors, run your drugs, look at your extras, and add up your total costs.

For 2027, the Part D deductible can be up to $700 and the yearly out-of-pocket drug cap is $2,400.

If you’re in a Medicare Advantage plan, January 1 to March 31 is a safety net, not a plan.

Let’s look at it together, at no cost to you

If you’d like a calm, second set of eyes on your 2027 plan, Medicare Experts is here to help. We’re an independent, licensed Medicare brokerage based in Apex, NC. Since we work with multiple insurance companies, we can compare your options side by side, check your doctors and prescriptions, and explain what’s changing in plain English. A review costs you nothing, and there’s never any pressure.

Give us a call at 919-390-1880 or toll-free at 888-985-0014 before December 7.

Medicare Experts, with Optimum Financial Brokerage, Inc. · Apex, NC · www.yourmedicareexperts.com