The 2026 Medicare annual Open Enrollment Period (AEP) begins today, October 15th and continues through December 7th

The 2026 Medicare Part D and Medicare Advantage plan annual Open Enrollment Period (AEP) begins today, October 15th, and continues through December 7th. During the next seven weeks, you will have the opportunity to add, change, or drop your Medicare Advantage plan or Medicare Part D prescription drug plan.

Staying with your current 2025 plan into 2026?

If you are satisfied with your current 2025 Medicare Part D plan or Medicare Advantage plan coverage – and you understand how your Medicare plan is changing in 2026 – you do not need to do anything – and you will be automatically re-enrolled into your Medicare plan along with any changes your plan is making for 2026. Be sure to review your plan’s Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) letter to learn more about your 2026 Medicare plan coverage.

Reminders:

-- All 2026 Medicare drug plans will continue to cover insulin at a $35 or less copay.
All 2026 stand-alone Medicare Part D prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage plans with drug coverage (MAPDs) will offer all insulin found on the plan’s formulary for a copay of $35 (or less) through all phases of Part D coverage (with insulin costs possibility reduced further in the Catastrophic Coverage phase).

-- All 2026 Medicare drug plans will continue to offer Part D vaccines at a $0 copay.
All 2026 stand-alone Medicare Part D prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage plans with drug coverage (MAPDs) will offer $0 cost sharing for vaccines that are recommended by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), such as the Shingles and Pneumonia vaccines.

-- Merged plans
Some 2025 Medicare plans will be consolidated and 2025 plan members are being automatically moved or “crosswalked” into a different 2026 Medicare plan – with potentially different and more expensive plan coverage.

-- Discontinued plans
Some 2025 Medicare plans will be discontinued or not offered in 2026. And members of these 2025 plans will not have 2026 Medicare plan coverage – unless they enroll in a different 2026 plan.

You can use our 2025/2026 Medicare plan comparison tools (PDP-Compare or MA-Compare) to see:

– Which 2025 Medicare plans will “move” plan members to other 2026 plans,
– changes in Medicare plan benefits and costs from 2025 to 2026,
– which 2025 Medicare plans are being discontinued in 2026, and
– the new Medicare plans being introduced in 2026.

To get you started, you can click here for an example of the 2025/2026 Texas Medicare Part D plan comparison (and then choose your own state or ZIP code).
Reviewing all 2026 Medicare Part D prescription drug plans in your area.

To see an overview of all stand-alone 2026 Medicare Part D prescription drug plans (PDPs) offered in your state, you can use our PDP-Finder. We provide a unique collection of prescription drug plan details including: drug tier copayments, initial deductibles, monthly premiums, Part D plan IDs, drug benefit type, formulary size, and Medicare plan quality star ratings.

You can click on the plan name or “Benefits & Contact Info” for more information about the specific Medicare PDP. To start, you can click here for an example of PDP-Finder showing all 2026 California Medicare Part D plans with a $0 initial deductible.

Reviewing all 2026 Medicare Advantage plans in your area.

Medicare Advantage plans combine your Medicare Part A in-patient coverage (hospitalization), Medicare Part B out-patient coverage (doctor visits) - and may provide your Medicare Part D prescription drug coverage. A Medicare Advantage plan may also provide additional healthcare benefits such as: limited dental, vision, hearing aid, and fitness center coverage. In some areas, Medicare Advantage plans will also offer non-health benefits such as limited transportation and meal service.

Medicare Advantage plans with prescription drug coverage are offered in many areas with a $0 monthly premium and a $0 initial drug deductible – and a low out-of-pocket spending limit (MOOP) – plus some $0 premium 2026 Medicare Advantage plans also include a Medicare Part B premium Giveback feature, returning a portion of your Part B premium each month.

You can use the 2026 MA-Finder for searching and comparing all Medicare Advantage plans across the country by plan features. Since Medicare Advantage plans are offered on a county-by-county basis, begin by entering your ZIP code and search. You can click on the plan name or the “Benefits & Contact Info” button for more information about a specific Medicare Advantage plan. Click here for an example of $0 premium Medicare Advantage plans that include prescription drug coverage (MAPDs) in New York, NY – just change the ZIP code to see the plans in your area.

Reviewing Medicare Part D plans qualifying for the Low-Income Subsidy $0 Premium.

PDP-Finder and MA-Finder also offer information for Medicare beneficiaries qualifying for financial Extra-Help (Low-Income Subsidy) and may be particularly helpful to advocates and nursing homes. In both Finder tools, you can choose the “LIS Subsidy Amount” and the monthly Medicare plan premiums will be adjusted based on your selected level of Extra Help.

If you are just seeking stand-alone Medicare Part D plans that have monthly premiums completely covered by your state’s Low-Income Subsidy, you can narrow your plan search by choosing “Yes, show only plans that qualify for the $0 Premium” option on PDP-Finder. Click the link for an Click the link for an example of all 2026 Part D plans in California qualifying for the LIS $0 premium.

Review 2026 Medicare plans by drug coverage and costs.

We have three different tools available to check coverage of your prescription drugs:

(1) The 2026 Formulary Browser allows you to browse through all 2026 Medicare prescription drug plan formularies or drug lists. You can click on the cost-sharing values of any medication to see the cost difference between using a preferred network pharmacy or a standard network pharmacy.

(2) The 2026 Drug Finder ( on this site) provides a quick way to see how all Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage plans in your area are covering a particular prescription drug. Drug Finder details include drug tier, cost-sharing, average negotiated retail drug prices, and usage management restrictions (such as Quantity Limits or Prior Authorization requirements).

(3) The 2026 Long-Term Care (LTC) Drug Finder ( on this site) is also online and provides a simple way to compare drug usage management restrictions for the top LTC medications found on Low-Income Subsidy (LIS) $0 premium Medicare Part D plans along with Institutional Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plans (I-SNPs). You can click here to see an example for Pennsylvania.

*Again, pay special attention to the cost of insulin covered by a 2026 Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage (MAPD) plan – covered insulin will not have a monthly copay over $35 – no matter what is shown on online.
Finally, remember there is no need to rush into a decision.

You have plenty of time to choose a 2026 Medicare Part D or Medicare Advantage plan. If you need assistance, please contact a local insurance agent, advocate, SHIP volunteer, or call a Medicare representative at 1-800-Medicare (1-800-633-4227).

Questions?

If you have any general questions about Medicare Part D plans or Medicare Advantage plans, please let us know. You can click here for our online Help Desk to submit a question.