Wellness Wednesday: Medicare Enrollment Opens; What Oklahomans Need To Know

Medicare, a health insurance program for Americans over the age of 65, opened its enrollment earlier in October.

The Medicare Enrollment Period, which impacts hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans, has some changes for those enrolling for 2025.

Oklahoma health care provider Archwell Health's Dr. Awndria Medina joined News 9 on Wednesday to share more about what enrollees can expect in this year's open enrollment.

We're in the time period of the year that people can reflect on their care, their PCPs, their primary care clinics, and make changes to their Medicare plan, Medina said. This is the time of year to make changes to the plans, if people are wanting to do that.

As for the changes, Medina said one thing enrolled should look out for is how coverage for prescription drugs has been affected, specifically, the coverage gap known to Medicare enrollees as the donut hole.

One of the big changes this year is to prescription drug coverage, Medina said. So a lot of people are familiar with the 'donut hole,' which increases the cost of some meds, generally, at the end of the year. The plans this year have adjusted the out-of-pocket pay, so that people hopefully will not fall into that donut hole and will end up paying less.

Medina said the gap in coverage puts more of a burden on patients, but now insurance plans and Medicare will help to cover more of the cost.

As for what is covered by Medicare as a whole, Medina said several health-related necessities are covered by the plan.

Medicare covers primary care, specialty care, inpatient services, testing and some of the [Medicare] Advantage, Medina said. Plans cover eye care, dental care, and even over-the-counter medication benefits.

For those assisting patients enroll in Medicare this year, Medina said there are several things you can do to help your loved ones.

Take a look at their care from this year, Medina said. Talk to your loved ones about their relationship with their primary care doctor, and see if it's time to make a change.

The open enrollment period is set to end on Dec. 7.

For more information about Archwell Health and Medicare Advantage, click here.