Medicare Advantage

Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment in Levittown, PA

LEVITTOWN, Pa. — If you woke up in January with buyer's remorse about the Medicare Advantage plan you picked during fall enrollment, you are not stuck. From January 1 through March 31, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (MA-OEP) gives current Advantage members one shot to make a change.

A second chance for Levittown Medicare Advantage members

This window matters more than many people realize. Fall's Annual Enrollment Period ends December 7, 2026, and coverage for 2027 goes live January 1. If your doctor is no longer in-network, a prescription is priced higher than you expected, or your plan simply is not the fit you thought it would be, MA-OEP is your reset button.

Here is what Bucks County residents in Levittown can — and cannot — do during these three months.

What you CAN change during MA-OEP

The MA-OEP is narrower than fall enrollment. According to CMS, if you are enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan on January 1, you may do one of the following between January 1 and March 31:

• Switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan (with or without drug coverage).
• Drop your Medicare Advantage plan and return to Original Medicare (Parts A and B).
• If you return to Original Medicare, you may also join a stand-alone Part D prescription drug plan.

The change takes effect the first day of the month after the plan gets your request. So a switch made in February typically starts March 1.

What you CANNOT do in this window

This is where people get tripped up. During MA-OEP, you cannot:

• Switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan (if you were in Original Medicare on January 1).
• Join a Part D drug plan if you are staying in Original Medicare and did not have one.
• Make more than one change. Once you use your MA-OEP switch, that's it until next fall's AEP (October 15 – December 7).

If you are brand new to Medicare — for example, you turned 65 in January — you have your own Initial Enrollment Period and different rules apply.

Why the 2027 reset may feel different

Some changes taking effect in 2027 may push more members to take a second look:

• Part D out-of-pocket costs are capped across all Medicare drug plans — $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027. Once you hit the cap, you pay nothing more for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• The Part D deductible cannot exceed $615 in 2026 and $700 in 2027.
• The old "donut hole" coverage gap is gone — Part D now has just three phases (deductible, initial, catastrophic).
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs into level monthly payments instead of paying big amounts at the pharmacy counter. You have to opt in; it does not lower the total, just smooths it.

If any of these features would have changed your fall decision, MA-OEP is when to act.

How Levittown residents can decide

Levittown sits in Bucks County, and Medicare Advantage plan availability is set at the county level. That means the menu of plans available to you is the same as for your neighbors elsewhere in Bucks County, but it may differ from what a friend in Philadelphia or Montgomery County sees.

A few questions worth asking before you switch:

1. Are my doctors and hospitals in-network for 2027? Networks reset every January. Call the provider's billing office to confirm — do not rely on last year's directory. 2. Are my prescriptions on the plan's formulary, and in what tier? Formularies change annually. 3. Do I travel or spend winters out of state? Some plans have tighter regional networks than others. 4. Would Original Medicare plus a stand-alone Part D plan (and possibly a Medigap policy) fit me better? Note: Medigap eligibility outside your initial six-month open enrollment window can involve medical underwriting in Pennsylvania.

Where to get unbiased help

You do not have to figure this out alone, and you should not rely on a TV ad.

• medicare.gov — the official Plan Finder lets you enter your drugs and compare plans available in Bucks County.
• 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) — 24/7, free.
• PA MEDI — Pennsylvania's State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) — offers free, one-on-one counseling from trained volunteers who do not sell insurance. Bucks County residents can reach a local counselor through the Bucks County Area Agency on Aging.