Guide · New residents & snowbirds
Moving to Florida on Medicare, and Medicare for snowbirds
Nobody arrives in Florida without a Medicare plan; the question is whether the one you brought still works here. Here is what a move does to your coverage, what a winter does, and what to do about each.
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Florida gains more new residents on Medicare every year than any other state, and every one of them brings a plan built for somewhere else. Whether you are moving here for good or wintering here from Minnesota, the rules are not complicated, but they are unforgiving, so here they are plainly.
If you are moving to Florida
Your Advantage or Part D plan does not come with you
Medicare Advantage and Part D plans are sold by county, and you must live in the plan’s service area — meaning your permanent residence. When you move that residence to Florida, your old plan ends and you get a Special Enrollment Period: generally the month you tell the plan plus two more months, to enroll in plans sold in your new county. Use it. If you miss it you are on Original Medicare with no drug coverage until the next Annual Election Period, and the Part D penalty clock is running.
Your Medigap policy probably does
A Medigap policy is not tied to a county. Once issued it stays in force wherever you live, though the carrier will usually re-rate it to Florida’s pricing, which runs above most states’. You can keep it. Whether you should is a comparison: your existing policy may be attained-age rated and climbing every birthday, while a new Florida policy would be issue-age rated at your current age — but buying the new one may require underwriting, because a move alone does not create a Florida guaranteed-issue right for Medigap. We run the comparison with your actual premium and rate history in hand; the state-by-state rules are on switching Medigap plans.
Moving from New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts or Maine? Those states let residents buy or switch Medigap without health questions year-round. Florida does not. If you are past 65 and think you might ever want a Medigap policy, buy it — or keep the one you have — before you change your residence. Once you are a Floridian, the only guaranteed windows are the ones on our Medigap page.
Your county decides your menu
The Florida menu is deep in Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Hillsborough, Pinellas, Orange and the Villages corridor, and thinner in the Panhandle, the Keys and the rural interior. Which hospital systems a plan includes matters more than the premium; our city and region pages name them county by county.
If you are a snowbird
If you keep your permanent residence up north and winter here, your plan from home applies in Florida exactly as its rules say. A Medigap policy with Original Medicare covers Baptist, Cleveland Clinic, Lee Health or Sarasota Memorial the same way it covers your hospital at home. An Advantage HMO from Ohio or Minnesota covers emergencies and urgent care here and, on most plans, nothing else; a PPO may cover routine care out of network at higher cost; a few plans have a travel benefit that extends in-network coverage for up to six or twelve months. Wintering away for four or five months does not change your residence; most plans allow up to six months, some up to twelve, out of area before they disenroll you. Our Minnesota site covers the same question from the other end: Medicare for Minnesota snowbirds.
| Plan type | Routine care in Florida | What you pay here |
|---|---|---|
| Original Medicare + Medigap | Any provider that accepts Medicare | Same as at home — the supplement pays its share anywhere |
| Medicare Advantage PPO | Out-of-network providers, if the plan allows | Higher out-of-network copays or coinsurance; check the out-of-network maximum |
| Medicare Advantage HMO | Emergencies and urgent care only, on most plans | Routine care generally not covered out of area |
| Part D (standalone or built in) | National pharmacy networks; mail order | Preferred-pharmacy pricing may differ; check that Publix, CVS or Walgreens near you is preferred |
Part D away from home
Every Part D plan has a national pharmacy network, so filling a prescription in Naples or Nashua is not a problem. Pricing can be: plans have preferred pharmacies where copays are lowest, and Publix, which is preferred in many Florida plans, may not exist where you summer. Mail order at 90-day supplies solves most of it. We check both ZIP codes when we compare plans.
Good to know
Frequently asked questions
I just moved to Florida. How long do I have to pick a new plan?
A permanent move out of your plan’s service area opens a Special Enrollment Period: generally the month you notify the plan plus two more months, to enroll in Advantage or Part D plans sold in your new county. Miss it and you wait for the Annual Election Period.
Can I keep my Medigap policy from another state after moving to Florida?
Usually yes. The policy stays in force and is typically re-rated to Florida’s premiums. Whether to keep it or replace it depends on its rating method and rate history versus a new Florida issue-age policy, and replacing it may require underwriting. We run the comparison.
Does my Ohio or Minnesota Advantage plan work in Florida for the winter?
For emergencies and urgent care, yes. For routine care, most HMOs do not; some PPOs cover out-of-network care at higher cost, and a few plans have a travel benefit. Read the Evidence of Coverage, and if travel is why you chose the plan, get the benefit in writing.
I am moving from New York. Do I keep my right to buy Medigap any time?
No. New York’s continuous guaranteed issue is a New York rule. Once you are a Florida resident past 65, Medigap is underwritten outside the guaranteed windows. If you may ever want a policy, buy or keep one before you change your residence.
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Sources we used on this page
- Medicare.gov: Medigap (Medicare Supplement Insurance)
- Medicare.gov: Medicare Advantage plans
- Medicare.gov: Special Enrollment Periods, including FEMA-declared disasters
- KFF: Key facts about Medigap enrollment and premiums (rating rules by state)
- MyMedigapRate: switching Medigap plans, the rules state by state
- Minnesota Medicare Enrollment (sister site): Medicare for Minnesota snowbirds
Figures are checked against the source at the review date in the byline below. If a source has changed since, the source wins.
Written by Darin Weidauer — Gerontologist (USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology), MBA, Registered Social Security Analyst, 22-year U.S. Air Force veteran and founder of ECOS Medicare Solutions — and reviewed by Ronilin Weidauer, licensed insurance agent in Florida (NPN 19427652, FL License #W690636).Last reviewed September 4, 2026. Plan availability, benefits and costs change every plan year — verify current details at Medicare.gov, 1-800-MEDICARE, or Florida SHINE at 1-800-963-5337.