What to Do During Medicare Open Enrollment

Shutterstock A. You will automatically keep your Part D coverage if you don't make any changes to it during open enrollment, which runs from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7 for 2014 plans. But it's a good idea to shop around again for Medicare Part D prescription-drug plans and all-in-one Medicare Advantage plans, especially if your health or medications have changed. Even if your premiums haven't risen much, your out-of-pocket costs could change significantly. Many Part D plans have increased premiums, boosted copayments and changed the pricing tiers for prescription drugs. A number of plans have four or five tiers of drug pricing, and your out-of-pocket costs could go up if the insurer moves your drugs from one pricing tier to another. If a medication moves from a preferred to a non-preferred brand-name drug or specialty drug, for example, you may have to pay as much as 25 percent of the cost yourself. Some plans even have two pricing tiers for generic drugs, charging a higher copayment for non-preferred generics.