Medicare Open Enrollment starts in mid-October. Soon, Medicare beneficiaries will find their mailboxes (both digital and physical) packed with ads touting the benefits of various plans. No matter how good an advertisement sounds, it's always important to do your due diligence when it comes to understanding health care.

But this year, new legislation and changes to the Medicare program make research even more critical if you’re shopping for a plan this fall. Starting January 1, 2020, The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) will limit who can enroll in Medigap Plans F and C. These are the only Medigap plans that cover the Part B deductible.

While many people worry about losing this coverage, the truth is, there's no need to panic. You won't have to say goodbye to these plans…at least, not yet.

Newly eligible Medicare beneficiaries will be most affected

These changes to plans F and C are due to a new law that prevents insurers from offering Medigap plans that cover the Part B deductible. Medicare Part B covers most common medical expenses, such as doctor visits, lab work, and durable medical equipment (like wheelchairs and medical braces). In short, Part B can cover anything from your annual wellness checkup to treating pneumonia to a yearly flu shot. The Part B deductible is what you'll have to pay out of pocket before your Part B coverage kicks in—$185 in 2019. 

For the most part, this law affects new enrollees only, and it doesn't begin until January 1, 2020. If you become eligible for Medicare on or after January 1, 2020, you won't be able to enroll in Medigap Plan F or C. But if you become eligible for Medicare December 31, 2019, or earlier you will still be able to join a Plan F or C in 2020 and beyond. This rule applies to people not currently enrolled in one of these plans or who don't have Medigap at all. For current Medicare beneficiaries, the pressure's off.

Current Medicare beneficiaries don't need to rush into—or out of—Plan F or C

If you’re considering enrolling in Plan F or C in 2019, you can confidently resist any advice to get in the door with Medigap Plans F and C before it closes. If you’re eligible for Medicare this fall you are, by definition, still eligible to enroll in Medigap Plan F or Plan C. You can enroll in these plans at any time—before or after January 1, 2020. 

On the flip side, some people speculate that it might be best to avoid Plans F and C, at least in the long run. Since newly eligible beneficiaries can't enroll, the pool of beneficiaries in these plans will slowly shrink. The fewer enrollees a plan has, the more expensive it is to run. As a result, premiums for these plans could rise, driving even more beneficiaries to drop Plans F and C, eventually causing insurers to stop offering these plans altogether.

Given that current Medicare beneficiaries will still be able to enroll in Plans F and C for many years to come, the pool of enrollees will probably shrink slowly. And Plan F at least is currently the most popular Medigap plan, so this plan will likely be around for a while. Boomers who now have Plan F or Plan C can comfortably keep their current coverage if it continues to fit their needs.

Newly eligible Medicare beneficiaries have other options

If you’ll become eligible for coverage on or after January 1, 2020, you’ll never have the opportunity to enroll in Medigap Plan F or C. Still, that may not have as significant an impact on your health care costs as you might think. The Part B deductible is just $185 in 2019 and usually rises only a few dollars each year, if at all (it was $183 in both 2018 and 2017).

Meanwhile, Plans F and C are typically the most expensive Medigap plans because they offer the most coverage. Many people save at least $185 per year ($15.42 per month) by choosing a plan with a lower premium anyway. Plan G, for example, covers everything Plan F covers except the Part B deductible. Provided it's priced at least $15 lower per month than Plan F, beneficiaries can save more money each year by choosing Plan G over Plan F.

Conclusion

No matter when you become eligible for Medicare, don't let the new changes to Medigap Plans F and C cause undue stress. If you can enroll in these plans now, you'll still be able to for many years to come. If you aren't eligible for Medicare yet, you have plenty of other options for keeping your health care costs low.

Kathryn Casna is a Medicare specialist at Eligibility.com. She spends her days translating government-speak into plain English to help people get the coverage they need. She spends her evenings translating recipes into (mostly) palatable meals to share with friends and family.