Medicare 2026

Medicare Open Enrollment 2026: Your Dec. 7 Jacksonville Guide

JACKSONVILLE, Ark. — The Medicare Annual Enrollment Period runs from October 15 through December 7, 2026, and the choices you make in that window shape your coverage for all of 2027. If you live in Jacksonville, this is the once-a-year stretch when you can switch, drop, or pick up most Medicare coverage without needing a special reason — and once December 7 passes, most of those doors close until next fall.

This year carries real weight. A brand-new $2,100 cap on out-of-pocket prescription costs takes effect in 2026 under Part D, and Part D plans can look very different from the ones offered a year ago. That makes reviewing your coverage — even if you love what you have — worth an hour of your time.

What you can actually do between Oct. 15 and Dec. 7

The Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) is the widest window Medicare offers each year. During these dates you can:

• Switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan, or the other way around.
• Change from one Medicare Advantage plan to another.
• Join a stand-alone Part D prescription drug plan, switch plans, or drop your drug coverage.
• Sign up for Part D if you didn't do it when you first became eligible (a late-enrollment penalty may still apply).

Any change you make during AEP takes effect January 1, 2027. If you do nothing, your current plan generally rolls over — but the plan itself may have changed. That's why every fall your carrier mails an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC). Read it. Premiums, drug lists (formularies), pharmacy networks, and provider networks can shift from one year to the next.

Why 2027 is different

Two big pieces of the Part D redesign are now fully in place:

• The coverage gap — the old "donut hole" — is gone. Part D now has three phases: deductible, initial coverage, and catastrophic.
• Out-of-pocket drug spending is capped at $2,400 in 2027 (it is $2,100 in 2026). Once you hit that number, you pay nothing more for covered Part D drugs the rest of the calendar year.
• The maximum Part D deductible a plan can charge is $615 in 2026 and $700 in 2027.

There's also the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan, an optional program that lets you spread your Part D costs across the year in monthly installments instead of paying a big bill at the pharmacy counter. It doesn't lower your costs — it smooths them out. You can opt in through your Part D plan.

Higher earners should also note that IRMAA — the income-related surcharge on Part B and Part D — starts above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

How to decide what to do

You don't need to switch to have a good AEP. You just need to make sure your current coverage still fits. A useful checklist:

1. Pull out your ANOC. Look for changes to your premium, deductible, and the tier your regular medications sit on. 2. List your prescriptions, with dosages. Then check each drug against the 2027 formulary. 3. Check your doctors and hospitals. If you're in a Medicare Advantage plan, confirm they'll be in-network in 2027. 4. Think about how you actually used care this year. Lots of specialist visits? A hospital stay? Travel out of state? Those patterns matter more than the sticker premium. 5. Use the Plan Finder at medicare.gov to compare options side by side using your own drug list and pharmacies.

What's available in the Jacksonville area

Jacksonville is in Pulaski County, and Medicare Advantage and Part D plan availability is set at the county level — not by city. For 2027, Pulaski County has 60 Medicare Advantage plans from 10 carriers (down from 77 plans and 9 carriers in 2026), with 48 plans continuing, 12 new, 16 not returning, and 13 renamed; 18 continuing plans change something in their terms. Healthy Arkansas, Inc. is new to the county next year. You can see the full list on medicare.gov by entering your ZIP code.

Under compliance rules, this article can't rank plans or quote specific premiums or copays — but the Plan Finder can show you those numbers for your exact situation.

Where to get real, unbiased help

• medicare.gov — the official site; the Plan Finder is the single most useful tool during AEP.
• 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) — available 24/7.
• Arkansas SHIIP (Senior Health Insurance Information Program) — free, one-on-one counseling from trained volunteers who don't sell insurance. Call 1-800-224-6330.

If someone shows up at your door or calls out of the blue pressuring you to switch, hang up. Legitimate help doesn't work that way.