HMO Guide for Seniors - Office of the Patient Advocate - State of ...
HMO Guide for Seniors - Office of the Patient Advocate - State of ...
HMO Guide for Seniors - Office of the Patient Advocate - State of ...
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10 Joining or Leaving a Medicare <strong>HMO</strong><br />
T<br />
here are many rules about joining, changing, or leaving<br />
a Medicare <strong>HMO</strong>. Be<strong>for</strong>e you change, check with your<br />
current plan or call HICAP. Keep using your old plan until<br />
your new plan tells you that your new coverage has started.<br />
Enrollment Periods<br />
There are several times when you can join or change your<br />
Medicare <strong>HMO</strong>. You can also return to Original Medicare<br />
and buy a Part D drug plan. These times include:<br />
Ron had to<br />
change Medicare<br />
<strong>HMO</strong>s while<br />
he was getting<br />
chemo<strong>the</strong>rapy.<br />
He talked with<br />
his doctor to<br />
make sure that<br />
no treatments<br />
were missed.<br />
Initial Enrollment Period: this is when you can first enroll<br />
in Medicare and join a Medicare <strong>HMO</strong>. It is a 7-month<br />
period, starting 3 months be<strong>for</strong>e <strong>the</strong> month <strong>of</strong> your 65th<br />
birthday and ending 3 months after.<br />
Annual Election Period: each year between November 15<br />
and December 31.<br />
Open Enrollment Period: each year between January 1 and<br />
March 31. There are limits to <strong>the</strong> changes you can make to<br />
your Part D drug coverage during this period.<br />
Special Enrollment Periods: if your employee or retiree<br />
coverage ends, if you have Medi-Cal, if your <strong>HMO</strong> closes,<br />
if you move out <strong>of</strong> your <strong>HMO</strong>’s service area, if you move<br />
into or out <strong>of</strong> a nursing home, and in some o<strong>the</strong>r cases.<br />
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