Medicare Special Enrollment Periods: Every Window Explained
Watch on YouTube Medicare Special Enrollment Periods let you enroll or switch plans outside Open Enrollment when specific life events happen. This video covers the 8-month Part B SEP after losing employer coverage (42 C.F.R. 407.20), the 63-day Part D SEP (42 C.F.R. 423.38), the dual-eligible quarterly window, the 5-star SEP, disaster SEPs, and the new Medigap SEP rights from the Inflation Reduction Act (P.L. 117-169, Section 11003). Learn the exact clock start dates, required documentation including form CMS-L564, and the four-step process for using each SEP without missing your window. Check the next video in our playlist for the Medigap vs. Medicare Advantage comparison.
▶ Watch next: Medigap vs Medicare Advantage: The One-Way Door Nobody Warns You About - Social Security https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmNCjut9U1k
📺 Full playlist: Social Security (US - 2026) https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLlIAFxS296491LWfYsLp6anRyo6_DO_pI
Chapters
- 0:00 Why SEPs Exist: The Gap After Open Enrollment
- 2:32 The 8-Month SEP: Leaving Employer Coverage
- 4:33 Moving, Plan Changes, and the 2-Month MA SEP
- 6:26 The 63-Day Part D SEP and Dual-Eligible Quarterly Windows
- 8:14 The 5-Star SEP, Disaster SEP, and IRA Medigap Rights
- 10:22 How to Use an SEP: Timing, Documentation, Common Mistakes
- 12:12 Quiz Time
SEPs are narrow windows that let you enroll outside the IEP without penalty — typically triggered by loss of employer coverage, moving out of a plan area, or specific life events. Knowing which SEPs exist and their exact durations (30 days, 60 days, 63 days, 8 months) is required to change plans at the right moment.
Key Topics
- The 8-month SEP after losing employer coverage (Part B)
- The 2-month SEP for Medicare Advantage after moving
- The 63-day SEP for Part D after losing creditable coverage
- Dual-eligible (Medicaid) SEPs — can change plans any quarter
- 5-star plan SEP — can switch to a 5-star plan once a year
- Disaster/emergency SEPs
- The new MA-to-Medigap SEPs from the Inflation Reduction Act