Medicare Open Enrollment starts on October 15th and ends on December 7th.  During this period, you can choose new health coverage plans for 2015 or make changes to your existing plan, learn about discounts on prescription drugs if you’ve reached the Part D coverage gap ("donut hole"), and take advantage of new benefits from the Affordable Care Act.  Below are helpful resources from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Resources for Medicare Beneficiaries

People with Medicare, their families, and caregivers can review and compare current plan coverage with new plan offerings, using many proven resources, including:

• Visiting www.medicare.gov to see plan coverage and costs available in their area, and enroll in a new plan if they decide to make a change. 
• Calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) for around-the-clock assistance to find out more about coverage options.  TTY users should call 1-877-486-2048.  Multilingual counseling is available. 
• Reviewing the 2015 Medicare & You handbook.  It is accessible online at: www.medicare.gov/pubs/pdf/10050.pdf -- and it has been mailed to the homes of people with Medicare.
• Getting one-on-one counseling assistance from the local State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP).  Local SHIP contact information can be found:
  • At www.medicare.gov/contacts/organization-search-criteria.aspx or;
  • On the back of the 2015 Medicare & You handbook or;
  • By calling Medicare (contact information above) 

Other helpful information can be found here:

• For information and one-on-one counseling for beneficiaries and their families, please visit the Sage PLUS Program website, Hawai‘i’s State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) at http://www.hawaiiship.org/ or call (808) 586-7299.

• For more information on quality improvements in Medicare Advantage and Prescription Drug Plans and Open Enrollment, read CMS Administrator Marilyn Tavenner’s blog post at: http://blog.cms.gov/ 
• For more information on Medicare Open Enrollment and to compare benefits and prices of 2015 Medicare health and drug plans, and view state-by-state fact sheets,  please visit: www.cms.gov/Center/Special-Topic/Open-Enrollment Center.html

People with Medicare who have limited income and resources may qualify for Extra Help paying for their prescription drug costs.  There is no cost or obligation to apply for Extra Help, also called the low-income subsidy.  Medicare beneficiaries, family members, or caregivers can apply online at http://www.socialsecurity.gov/prescriptionhelp or call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY users should call 1-800-325-0778) to find out more.