Special enrollment period

What it means

The annual window is not the only one. A defined list of circumstances opens an election period at other times.

A change of permanent residence is on that list twice: where the move takes the person outside the plan's service area or region, and — separately — where the move simply makes new plan options available to them.

Losing creditable prescription drug coverage involuntarily, and a plan being terminated or discontinued where the person lives, are also on it.

Why it matters

It turns a move from a constraint into a choice, and it is opened by the event rather than announced.

The window is defined against the event and the notice given, so the dates have to be asked for rather than assumed.

When you are likely to meet it

• When a parent moves.
• When a retiree drug benefit ends.
• When a plan leaves the area.

Related terms

• Creditable coverageDrug coverage at least as good as Medicare's — losing it involuntarily opens a window to enroll.
• Medicare AdvantageMedicare delivered by a private insurance plan instead of directly by the government. It is also called Part C.
• Medicare Part DMedicare's prescription drug coverage, bought as a separate plan from a private insurer.
• Service areaThe geographic area a Medicare Advantage plan is sold for — and outside which a person may not stay enrolled.

Official sources

The authority this page describes, at the agency that publishes it. Sahvelo does not restate a rule from a secondary source.

• Medicare — when can I join a health or drug plan (opens in a new tab)

Sahvelo guidance that uses this

• Moving a parent
• Medicare