Medicare Supplement

A Missed Medicare Deadline Follows Aurora Enrollees for Life

AURORA, Ill. — Missing a Medicare deadline can cost you for the rest of your life. That's the hard truth behind Part B and Part D late-enrollment penalties, and it's a mistake many people don't realize they've made until a bill shows up.

Here in Aurora, where thousands of residents age into Medicare each year, understanding the enrollment windows is one of the most important things you can do before your 65th birthday — or before you leave a job with health coverage.

How the Part B late penalty works

If you don't sign up for Medicare Part B when you're first eligible, and you don't qualify for a Special Enrollment Period, you may pay a permanent penalty. According to Medicare.gov, the Part B late-enrollment penalty adds 10% to your monthly premium for each full 12-month period you could have had Part B but didn't sign up.

That extra amount usually stays with you for as long as you have Part B. So a delay of two or three years isn't a one-time hit — it follows you through retirement.

How the Part D late penalty works

The Part D penalty works differently but can sting just as much. If you go 63 days or more in a row without Part D or other "creditable" prescription drug coverage after you're first eligible, Medicare adds a penalty to your monthly Part D premium.

The math: 1% of the "national base beneficiary premium" for every full month you went without coverage. That amount is added to your Part D premium every month, for as long as you have Part D. Medicare recalculates the base premium each year, so the penalty can shift slightly over time.

Creditable coverage usually means drug coverage from an employer, union, or the VA that pays, on average, at least as much as standard Medicare drug coverage. If you have that, keep the letter your plan sends each fall — you may need it.

Know your enrollment windows

The simplest way to avoid penalties is to know the dates:

• Initial Enrollment Period (IEP): The 7-month window around your 65th birthday — the three months before, your birth month, and the three months after.
• General Enrollment Period: January 1 – March 31, for people who missed their IEP.
• Special Enrollment Periods (SEPs): For people leaving employer coverage or in other qualifying situations.
• Annual Enrollment Period (AEP): October 15 – December 7, for changing Part D and Medicare Advantage plans.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: January 1 – March 31, for people already in a Medicare Advantage plan.

If you're still working at 65 with solid employer coverage, talk to your HR office before you decline Part B. Getting that decision wrong is one of the most common causes of penalties.

What's new for 2026

A few program-level changes are worth knowing as you weigh drug coverage decisions:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100 in 2026. Once you hit it, you pay $0 for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• The maximum Part D deductible is $615.
• The old "donut hole" coverage gap is gone as of 2025 — Part D now has three simpler phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs across the calendar year in monthly installments, at no extra charge.
• IRMAA (higher premiums for higher incomes) begins above $109,000 for a single filer in 2026, based on your 2024 tax return.

These changes don't erase the penalties, but they do change the math for people who were skipping Part D because drug costs felt unpredictable.

Plan availability in Kane County

Aurora is in Kane County, where Medicare plan choices are set at the county level by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). If you want to see how many Part D and Medicare Advantage plans are offered in Kane County for 2026, the plan finder at Medicare.gov lets you compare by ZIP code. Availability, formularies, and pharmacy networks vary by plan, so it's worth checking each fall during AEP.

How to avoid a penalty in the first place

A few practical steps:

1. Mark your Initial Enrollment Period on the calendar the year you turn 65. 2. If you're delaying because you have job-based coverage, get written confirmation that it's considered creditable — especially for drugs. 3. Don't let 63 days pass without drug coverage once you're eligible for Part D. 4. If you missed a window, call 1-800-MEDICARE to ask about your options. In some cases, an equitable relief request can reduce or remove a penalty.