Your Medicare Prep Checklist Before Enrollment Opens
The useful work happens before any 2027 plan detail is public, because none of it is about the plans. It is about you.
By Timothy Jones, licensed independent Medicare agent · · 6 min read
The short answer
Six things, about an hour in total: list your prescriptions with dosages, list your doctors and preferred hospital, open your Annual Notice of Change when it arrives by September 30, be honest about which extra benefits you actually used, note anything that changed about your health, and book your October review now. None of it requires 2027 plan information.
Every year people arrive in November wanting to compare plans and spend the first appointment working out what medications they take and which doctors they see. That is not comparing. That is preparation happening at the worst possible moment, with a deadline approaching and every agent in the county booked.
The six things
- 01
Write down every prescription, with the dosage
Takes 15 minutesNot the bottle, the list. Drug name, strength, and how often you take it. This one document does more to determine which plan fits you than everything else on this checklist combined, and almost nobody arrives with it.
- 02
List your doctors, and the hospital you would want
Takes 10 minutesPrimary care, every specialist you see, and where you would want to be admitted. If you cross into Portland for any of them, mark which ones — that is where plans differ most for Clark County residents.
- 03
Watch for your Annual Notice of Change
Arrives by Sep 30It arrives by September 30 and it is the only document that tells you, in advance and in writing, exactly what your current plan is changing for next year. Open it. Keep it. Most people bin it unread.
- 04
Check what you actually used this year
Takes 10 minutesDid you use the dental allowance? The fitness benefit? The over-the-counter card? People routinely pick a plan for a benefit that sounds valuable and never claim it, then keep paying for it. Be honest about what you used.
- 05
Note anything that changed about your health
Takes 5 minutesA new diagnosis, a new specialist, a surgery scheduled for next year, a medication that started or stopped. These change which plan fits more than any published benefit does, and they are the details you will forget to mention in October.
- 06
Book your review before October fills
Do it todayYou can schedule an October appointment now, before anyone can discuss specific plans. The first two weeks of October are the calmest and most useful window of the entire season, and they are gone by the third week.
Why nobody can discuss 2027 plans with you yet
CMS rules bar agents from discussing specific benefits or premiums for the coming plan year until October 1. That is not a scheduling preference, it is a marketing regulation. If someone offers to walk you through 2027 plan specifics in September, that itself tells you something. Booking ahead and reviewing your current plan are both fine.
The season, in dates
- By Sep 30Your Annual Notice of Change arrives
- Oct 12027 plan details become public
- Oct 15Annual Enrollment opens
- Dec 7Annual Enrollment closes — firm
- Jan 1New coverage begins
Book October now, not in November
You can schedule today for an October appointment. Bring the two lists and your Annual Notice of Change and the review takes about half an hour. No cost, and no obligation to change anything.
📅 Book in 30 secondsOr call (360) 472-4261
Questions
Why prepare before plan details are public?+
Because the preparation is about you, not about the plans. Your prescriptions, your doctors, and what you actually used this year do not depend on 2027 plan information being available. Doing that work in September means an October review is a half-hour comparison instead of a fact-finding session.
When do 2027 plan details become available?+
October 1, 2026. That is the date CMS rules allow plans and licensed agents to discuss specific benefits and premiums for the coming year. Annual Enrollment itself opens October 15 and closes December 7.
Can I book an appointment before October?+
Yes, and it is a good idea. Scheduling ahead is allowed at any time. What cannot happen before October 1 is discussing specific 2027 plan benefits or premiums, so an early appointment is for preparation and for reviewing your current plan.
What if my Annual Notice of Change never arrived?+
Contact your plan directly and ask them to send a copy. They are required to provide it. Do not skip it — it is the single most useful document you will get about your own coverage.
How long does a Medicare review actually take?+
About thirty minutes if you arrive with the prescription list and provider list. Considerably longer if the appointment has to start by working out what you take and who you see, which is the usual reason a review turns into two appointments.
Keep reading
- Your ANOC letter: how to read it
- Medicare 2027 vs 2026: what changed
- Verifying your Clark County providers
- Medicare in 2027: what changes
Dates verified August 30, 2026. Annual Enrollment runs October 15 to December 7 each year.
Disclaimer: American Senior Choices is not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. government or the federal Medicare program. We do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 11 organizations which offer 70 products in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.