What are Your Rights to Medigap Policies during Open Enrollment?

Open enrollment is the time when you are allowed to enroll in Medicare for the first time and you have many options to assess.  Your Medicare open enrollment will happen the day you turn 65 AND are enrolled in Medicare Part B.  Insurance companies must adhere to some specific rules at this time in reference to Medical underwriting, here are a few of the rules they must adhere to: 

• They cannot refuse to sell you any Medigap policy they sell.  If a policy was available to be sold to anybody else it has to be available to you too, regardless of your situation. 

• They cannot make you wait for coverage to start, it must start the day that you are eligible under Medicare rules.  There is no default time in which you must wait for your coverage in order to qualify.

• They cannot charge you more for a Medigap policy because of your health problems.  This is significant because many insurance companies will do this on standard plans in order to avoid paying for something that was pre-existing.

You have the right to have all of these things done for you, if you feel an insurance company is not adhering to these rules you need to call your local department of insurance.