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By now, Medicare beneficiaries should have received their Annual Notice of Change (ANOC). Have you overlooked yours?
Here’s why you need to review your ANOC — before it’s too late.
For the past several months our home mailbox has been filled with junk, mostly political ads ranging from school district, city and county, to state and congressional campaigns for the upcoming election. It’s easy to just give everything a quick glance and toss it all into the recycling bin.
But sometimes a mailer that looks like junk is anything but. I’m referring specially to something called the Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) mailed every September to those enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan or a Medicare prescription drug plan.
The one I received from my prescription drug plan was not in an envelope. It was folded and taped in two spots, had what looked, at first glance, like a bulk mail imprint, and was printed on cheap paper. That’s not unusual. But I didn’t toss it because I was expecting it.
Many Medicare beneficiaries ignore the Annual Notice of Change
A survey of Medicare enrollees by the Patient Advocate Foundation found that only 44 percent said they always review their plan’s ANOC. Of those who don’t review it, about half said it’s because they have no interest in reading it.
I find those survey results easy to believe but hard to understand. In my experience as a registered Medicare counselor, I regularly encounter those who haven’t paid attention to this important document and are wrestling with the consequences.
I want to help you understand that you could find yourself facing difficulties getting your health care and big unexpected bills for your treatment if you don’t read the ANOC.
The all-important ANOC
Medicare’s Annual Election Period runs through Dec. 7. It’s also known as the Annual Enrollment Period and is often called the Annual Open Enrollment. I’ll refer to it as the AEP. By any of those names, it’s the time of year when you should look at your current Medicare coverage. You’ll want to assess whether changing your drug or Medicare Advantage plan can lower your costs or improve your benefits. Your first clue is in the ANOC.
Related: Medicare’s Annual Enrollment ends on December 7. Are you ready for 2027?
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The Prescription Drug ANOC
Those enrolled in Original Medicare generally have a standalone prescription drug plan (PDP). Those plans are sold by insurance companies who can set rates and drug copays at any level they choose. They also make their own determinations about which Medicare approved drugs they include in their coverage list (known as the formulary).
The ANOC is required to show, in a side-by-side comparison, how the plan will change from the current plan year to the one starting in January. It will show the old and new monthly premiums, copays for the different tiers of drugs and the maximum deductible. It must inform you if the pharmacy network has changed. If the formulary has changed, it must tell you and then provide a link to the list of covered drugs on the plan website.
And it includes a warning in bold face type that if you do nothing by Dec. 7, you will automatically be enrolled in the plan for the following year.
Don’t look at just the change in the premium. Plans have been known to reduce the premium but increase copays in ways that make the same plan significantly more expensive than it first appears. I’ve written before on how Medicare beneficiaries can use the AEP to save on their prescription drug costs. The AEP is your once-a-year opportunity to compare PDPs and switch to one that works better for you.
I still have difficulty understanding why someone would not want to know if their drug coverage is getting more expensive or if one of their medications will no longer be covered by their plan. Yet I’ve regularly met with individuals who ignored the drug plan ANOC, stayed with their current plan and missed the opportunity to save more than $1,000 in drug costs over the year.
Related: More than 100,000 Medicare beneficiaries lost their drug coverage. Don’t let it happen to you
Medicare Advantage plan ANOCS contain important information
Medicare Advantage (MA) plans are required to send the ANOC to all of their members by Sept. 30. If you’re in such a plan, here is what you should be looking for.
1. Will your plan still be there next year? A large number of regular MA plans are terminating at the end of this year.
2. Is the plan making network changes? Will your doctors and other providers still be in the plan’s network? Nationally, many medical groups and hospitals have decided to stop accepting MA plans.
3. Is the monthly premium going up?
4. What will happen to the copays for seeing a primary care physician or a specialist?
5. Look at changes in copays for labs, X-rays and other imaging, urgent care, ER and hospital stays.
6. What is happening to the maximum out-of-pocket amount the plan can charge you for in-network care, not counting premiums? The federal allowable maximum is increasing to $9,850 in 2027.
7. If the plan’s extra benefits (such as dental, vision, hearing and gym memberships) are important to you, look to be sure they will still be there next year.
8. If your MA plan includes prescription drug coverage, check for changes in the drug deductible, copays and formulary.
If you haven’t read the ANOC because you can’t find it, call your MA or drug plan at the phone number on the back of your member card and ask them to mail you a replacement.
Related: Why does my Medicare plan keep calling for a home visit?
Make a conscious decision
If you’re a regular reader at Consumer Rescue, then you likely think of yourself as an informed consumer. Act like one and use the information in the ANOC to research and understand your alternatives.
You can compare both PDPs and MA plans using the plan finder tool on the Medicare website at Medicare.gov.
A source of unbiased and free help is available from the federally-funded SHIP program. The website will help you find the SHIP program in your state.
Medicare insurance agents can also help you find a better PDP or MA plan. But you need to be aware that some insurance companies have reduced or even eliminated the commissions they pay agents for enrolling people in those plans. Some unethical agents may try to steer customers to those plans that pay the best commission. So, if working with an agent, ask if they represent all of the MA and PDP plans available in your area.
Gather the information, compare plans, and then make a conscious, thoughtful and informed decision about whether to make a change in your Medicare coverage. It’s your money and your health. Aren’t those worth a little extra work during the AEP?
Do You Have a Medicare Question?
If you have a Medicare question, feel free to contact me at Ask Abe here at Consumer Rescue. I’m a registered SHIP Medicare counselor with ten years of experience helping beneficiaries.
