Medisure Agency

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Turning 65? Your Medicare timeline

Initial Enrollment is a 7-month window around the month you turn 65 — not the same as fall Open Enrollment. This timeline is general education for California. It is not enrollment and not a plan pick.

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The 7-month Initial Enrollment Period

IEP usually starts 3 months before the month you turn 65, includes your birthday month, and ends 3 months after. If your birthday is the 1st of the month, Part A and Part B can start the first of the prior month. Confirm dates with Social Security. Use the eligibility calculator if you want a date sketch.

Before the window: Parts A and B

Most people enroll in Part A (hospital) and Part B (medical) first. If you or a spouse still works, employer size and whether coverage is creditable can change whether you delay Part B. Get that in writing from the benefits office. Do not guess from a friend’s situation.

During the window: drugs and the rest

Original Medicare does not include routine outpatient drugs. You generally add Part D or join a Medicare Advantage plan that includes drug coverage. Going 63 days or more without creditable drug coverage after you are eligible can add a late-enrollment penalty. Medigap, if you want it, has its own open-enrollment clock after Part B.

IEP is not AEP

Annual Enrollment (October 15 – December 7) is for people who already have Medicare and may change Advantage or Part D. Mixing those windows is a common source of stress. Confirm both on Medicare.gov.

Common questions

Is turning 65 the same as Open Enrollment?
No. Initial Enrollment is for people new to Medicare. Annual Enrollment (October 15–December 7) is a later window for people who already have Medicare.
Where do I confirm my dates?
Social Security and Medicare.gov. This website does not enroll you or set your start date.

My Medicare Checkup

Answer a few questions about your ZIP code, what matters about cost and doctors, and where you get care. The summary shows the questions those answers raise. Confirm each one with the office, the plan, or Medicare.gov. A listing in a directory, or the name of a plan, does not show whether a doctor is in the network, whether a prescription is covered, or what you would pay this year.

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You will get a summary of the questions to verify. You can also talk it through with Alan.

For the other pages on this topic, open the Medicare at 65 guide.

2026 figures

Medicare eligibility date

See when Part A and Part B can start at 65, and your Initial Enrollment window.

Read: Turning 65? Your Medicare timeline

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Worksheet

Which enrollment window am I in?

See whether Initial, General, Annual, Advantage, Medigap, or a Special Enrollment Period may be open.

Read: Which enrollment window am I in?

Do you already have Medicare?
Which of these apply? Check any.
Has a Special Enrollment situation happened? Check any.

No calendar window is open on the date you checked.

A Special Enrollment Period may apply

  • Special Enrollment Period — 5-star plan
    December 8 – November 30
    If a 5-star Medicare Advantage or Part D plan is offered where you live, you may switch to that plan once during this span. This form cannot see star ratings. Confirm on Medicare.gov.
Other windows are not open on this date
  • Initial Enrollment Period
    The seven months around the month you first became eligible
    If you already have Medicare, this first window is behind you. A fall change uses Annual Enrollment.
  • Initial Coverage Election Period
    When you first could join a Medicare Advantage plan
    If you already have Medicare, a later Advantage change uses Annual Enrollment, Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment, or a Special Enrollment Period.
  • General Enrollment Period
    January 1 – March 31, 2026
    If you missed Initial Enrollment and you do not have a Special Enrollment Period, you can sign up for Part A and Part B during these dates. Coverage usually starts the month after you enroll, and a late penalty can apply. These months are also Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment, which is a different window.
  • Annual Enrollment (AEP)
    October 15 – December 7, 2026
    If you already have Medicare, this is the yearly window to change Medicare Advantage or Part D for January 1. It is not Medigap Open Enrollment.
  • Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment
    January 1 – March 31, 2026
    If you start the year in a Medicare Advantage plan, you may make one change to another Advantage plan or back to Original Medicare (with Part D if you need it).
  • Medigap Open Enrollment
    Six months from the month Part B starts, if you are 65 or older
    Enter a Part B start date to see the dates. This is not Annual Enrollment and not the California Birthday Rule. Under 65, the rule is different.
  • California Medigap Birthday Rule
    60 days starting on your birthday
    This window is only if you already have a Medicare Supplement in California. It is not a way to leave a Medicare Advantage plan.
  • Special Enrollment Period — job coverage
    While the job coverage lasts, and typically 8 months after the job or the coverage ends, whichever is first
    Coverage from a current employer of 20 or more people, including a working spouse, may let you delay Part B. COBRA usually does not extend this window. Part D uses a shorter clock, often two months. Get the proof in writing. This is not a determination.
  • Special Enrollment Period — you moved
    Often the month before the move through two months after it
    A move out of your plan’s service area can let you pick a new Medicare Advantage or Part D plan. The exact months depend on when you tell the plan. Confirm the dates for your move.
  • Special Enrollment Period — Extra Help or Medi-Cal
    Once a month, if you have Extra Help or Medicaid
    People with Extra Help, Medi-Cal, or a Medicare Savings Program may switch to Original Medicare and a stand-alone Part D plan, or switch stand-alone Part D plans, once a month. This does not let you join a new Medicare Advantage plan. Some people with full Medi-Cal can also join certain integrated Dual Special Needs Plans once a month. A government agency decides whether you qualify. This form does not.
  • Special Enrollment Period — your plan is ending
    The dates in the letter from Medicare or the plan
    If your Medicare Advantage or Part D plan is leaving Medicare or leaving your area, the notice gives the window. Do not guess those dates from this form.
  • Special Enrollment Period — trial right
    During the first 12 months in a Medicare Advantage plan, in the situations Medicare allows
    In some first-year cases you can drop Medicare Advantage and return to Original Medicare, and you may have a right to buy a Supplement without health questions. There is more than one trial right. Confirm which one fits before you drop a plan.
  • Special Enrollment Period — nursing home or other institution
    While you live in a qualifying institution, and for up to two months after you leave
    A move into or out of a nursing home or similar institution can open a window to join or change a plan. The facility has to qualify. Confirm that on Medicare.gov.

Checking a box does not approve a Special Enrollment Period. Medicare or Social Security decides whether that situation qualifies. This is a sketch, not a decision from Medicare or Social Security. Confirm the window that fits on Medicare.gov or with Social Security.

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