If you’re in a Medicare Advantage and/or Part D drug plan, you will receive an “Annual Notice of Change” (ANOC) and “Evidence of Coverage” (EOC) from your plan by September 30th each fall. The ANOC and EOC make reviewing your plan changes for 2025 easier, as all the changes are in these letters. They will include any changes in your coverage, your costs (including your deductible, copays and coinsurance), changes to provider and pharmacy networks, drug formularies and more, that will become effective in January. They will also share whether your current plan will be offered again in 2025. If you haven’t received your notice by September 30th, contact your plan to request a copy.
Medicare plans can change drastically each year, and Medicare’s Open Enrollment (October 15 – December 7) is your opportunity to review your plan’s costs and changes for 2025 so you can decide whether or not it still meets your needs. Make sure to watch out for these notices.
Why Reviewing your ANOC & EOC Are Particularly Important this year
Reviewing your notices this year is particularly important due to a new benefit taking effect. Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, as of January 1, 2025, all Medicare beneficiaries will have a maximum cap of $2,000 for prescription drugs covered by their Part D plan. This is great news!
Unfortunately, as Part D plans and Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug (MA-PD) plans will need to shoulder more of these costs, the insurance companies may look for ways to offset increased costs onto their members, via increased deductibles, premiums (currently $43 a month for stand-alone plans, on average, according to KFF), copays, etc.
See the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Inflation Reduction Act Implementation Timeline (PDF) for a full overview of all the Inflation Reduction Act changes that lower prescription drug costs being implemented between 2022 through 2029.
Help is available
If you would like some one-on-one assistance comparing your options, sifting through all the mail and making the best decision for your health care needs, contact your local Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program (HICAP). HICAP is California’s federally funded State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) and provides free, trusted and unbiased help with Medicare and related health care questions. If you or a loved one needs help in another state, visit the SHIP Technical Assistance Center website to find your local SHIP.
If you come across misleading marketing materials and/or enrollment fraud, please report it to our California Senior Medicare Patrol (SMP) at 1-855-613-7080. See our Novella: Medicare Marketing Abuse Alert for tips on how to spot and avoid enrollment fraud (scroll down to the novella – available in English and Spanish).
