A special enrollment period lets a person enroll or change coverage outside open enrollment after a qualifying life event such as marriage, birth, or loss of other coverage. It generally runs 60 days from the date of the event.
A Special Enrollment Period lets you enroll in or change a Marketplace plan outside Open Enrollment after a qualifying life event, such as losing coverage, marriage, or a new baby. You usually have 60 days.
Your first chance is the 7-month Initial Enrollment Period around your 65th birthday. After that, the Annual Enrollment Period (Oct 15 to Dec 7) lets you change Medicare Advantage and Part D plans, and Special Enrollment Periods apply after events like leaving employer coverage.
Losing job coverage is a qualifying event, so you typically have a few choices: elect COBRA to keep the same plan, enroll in a spouse’s plan, or buy a marketplace plan during the special enrollment period (where you may qualify for subsidies). Medicaid is also an option if your income qualifies.
A qualifying life event is a major life change; marriage, divorce, a new baby or adoption, losing other coverage, or moving; that opens a special enrollment period letting you add, drop, or change coverage outside open enrollment.
A birth, adoption, or placement for adoption is a qualifying event, so you generally have a special enrollment window, usually 30 days on an employer plan (60 days on the marketplace), to add the child, with coverage retroactive to the date of birth or placement.
Open enrollment is the once-a-year window when you can enroll in or change your coverage. A special enrollment period (SEP) lets you enroll outside that window after a qualifying life event, such as marriage, a new baby, or losing other coverage, usually within 30 days (employer plans) or 60 days (the Marketplace).