Indiana Medicare questions, answered plainly

Nothing. Independent Medicare agents are paid by the insurance carriers when you enroll, so comparing plans, answering questions and reviewing your coverage each year is free to you. Your premium is the same whether you enroll through us, another agent or the carrier directly.

A switching window Indiana added for 2026 (HEA 1226, amended by HEA 1260). If you are 65 or older and already have a Medigap policy, you can apply to a different insurer for the same plan letter without medical underwriting in a window that opens 31 days before your birthday and closes 31 days after it. The new policy starts the first of the following month. It is for existing Medigap policyholders; it does not let an Advantage member buy a supplement without underwriting.

Use the birthday rule. Put your birthday on the calendar, and in the window around it we compare every Indiana carrier’s current premium and filed rate history for your plan letter, then move you if a better-priced policy exists. Outside the window, a switch usually means health questions.

Yes. Since January 1, 2025 (SEA 215, Indiana Code 27-8-13-9.1), people under 65 on Medicare get their own six-month guaranteed-issue window when Part B begins, insurers must offer them coverage, and the law limits what they can be charged for Plans A, B and D. You get a fresh open enrollment for every plan at 65.

A plan that leaves you gives you a Special Enrollment Period and, because you lost coverage through no fault of your own, generally a guaranteed-issue right to buy a Medigap policy without health questions, usually within 63 days of the coverage ending. If you were moved rather than dropped — as IU Health Plans members were moved under Anthem for 2026 — the Annual Election Period is when to check that the new plan fits.

It depends on the plan and the year. Every big Indiana system accepts Original Medicare, and therefore every Medigap policy. Each contracts with some Advantage plans and not others, and the list changes every October. If a specific system or doctor is your care, we confirm the plan’s status in writing before you enroll.

A Medigap policy with Original Medicare works anywhere in the U.S. Most Medicare Advantage HMOs cover only emergencies out of area; some PPOs and travel benefits go further. See our snowbirds guide, and our Florida and Arizona sections for the view from the other end.

With Original Medicare and a Medigap policy, any out-of-state provider that accepts Medicare is covered. With an Advantage plan, only if that provider is in the plan’s network, which we confirm before you enroll.

Compare before you cancel anything. Retiree plans usually become a group Advantage plan or a group supplement at 65, the drug coverage is normally creditable, and leaving is often permanent. We set the retiree plan beside the individual options with the numbers, including the case for leaving it alone.

Usually neither. TFL pays secondary to Medicare and its pharmacy is creditable drug coverage. An MA-only Advantage plan can add dental or vision without duplicating the drug benefit.

In most cases, yes. VA medical care is not creditable coverage for Part B, so delaying it triggers a permanent penalty and leaves you without coverage at a non-VA hospital. VA pharmacy is creditable for Part D.

Your Initial Enrollment Period is the seven months around your 65th birthday. The Annual Election Period runs October 15 to December 7; Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment runs January 1 to March 31. Moving counties, losing a plan, or qualifying for Medicaid opens a Special Enrollment Period, and the birthday rule covers Medigap-to-Medigap switches.

Part B premium $202.90 a month, Part B deductible $283, Part A hospital deductible $1,736 per benefit period, Part D out-of-pocket cap $2,100. Higher earners pay IRMAA surcharges above $109,000 (single) or $218,000 (joint) of 2024 income. Our costs page has the full chart and calculators.

Possibly. Indiana’s Medicare Savings Programs (QMB, SLMB, QI), handled by FSSA’s Division of Family Resources, pay the Part B premium for people with limited income and resources, and QMB also covers Medicare’s deductibles and copays. HoosierRx pays up to $70 a month toward a Part D premium for eligible Hoosiers 65 and older. Apply through the FSSA Benefits Portal or 800-403-0864, or call Indiana SHIP at 800-452-4800.

Indiana’s Medicaid managed-care program for Hoosiers 60 and older who qualify for Medicaid on the basis of age, blindness or disability, launched July 1, 2024 and run by Anthem, Humana and UnitedHealthcare. It coordinates the Medicaid side, including long-term services and supports, while Medicare pays first for medical care.

Indiana SHIP, the State Health Insurance Assistance Program run by the Indiana Department of Insurance: 800-452-4800, with counseling sites across the state. You can also call 1-800-MEDICARE or use Medicare.gov. We are an independent agency, not a government program, and we say so on every page.

No. We represent a number of insurance organizations and products in Indiana, not all of them, and we will always say so. For the complete list, use Medicare.gov, 1-800-MEDICARE or Indiana SHIP. For help choosing among the plans we do offer, call (702) 706-6564.

Darin Weidauer holds Indiana insurance license #3951814 (NPN 18580338). You can verify it through the Indiana Department of Insurance’s licence lookup (run by Sircon) or through the NIPR.

We work with Hoosiers statewide by phone and video, which is how most people prefer it across 92 counties. Our sister agency has walk-in offices in Mesa and Sun City, Arizona, for snowbirds who are there for the winter.