Meet The Team
Real local people on your side
No 1-800 numbers and no online quote mills — just licensed Minnesota agents out of our Chaska office who pick up the phone when your plan changes and actually remember your name.
Medicare’s enrollment windows are confusing by design — and missing one can cost you. Here’s every period explained simply, plus the penalties to avoid and the 2026 numbers that matter.
Medicare has more enrollment windows than almost any program, and missing the right one can mean a gap in coverage or a penalty that follows you for life. This guide lays out each period in plain English, so you know exactly when to act. When you’re ready, we’ll walk it with you — free.
Your first chance to sign up — the three months before your birthday month, your birthday month, and the three months after. Enrolling before your birthday month means coverage can start sooner. This is the cleanest time to get Parts A and B.
A one-time, six-month window to buy any Medigap (Medicare Supplement) plan with no health questions asked. In Minnesota this means guaranteed access to the Basic, Extended Basic, and other state-standardized plans. Miss it, and switching later can require medical underwriting.
The yearly window when anyone on Medicare can join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan. Changes take effect January 1. This is the time to review your plan, since benefits, networks, and drug formularies change each year.
If you’re already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one chance here to switch to another Advantage plan or move back to Original Medicare (and add a Part D plan).
A safety net if you missed your Initial Enrollment Period for Part B. You can enroll here, with coverage beginning the first of the month after you sign up — though a late-enrollment penalty may apply.
Certain events — like losing employer coverage, moving out of your plan’s service area, or your plan leaving Medicare — open a special window to make changes outside the usual periods. We’ll confirm whether one applies to you.
Medicare penalties are permanent, which is why timing matters so much:
If you’re still working at 65 with employer coverage, you may be able to delay penalty-free — but the rules are specific, so it’s worth a quick conversation before you decide.
Tell us where you are in the process and a licensed Medicare broker will make sure you hit the right window and the right plan.
We’ll get back to you within one business day.
No 1-800 numbers and no online quote mills — just licensed Minnesota agents out of our Chaska office who pick up the phone when your plan changes and actually remember your name.
