Can i change my health insurance plan mid year blue cross blue shield

Things in life are always changing! No worries. Here’s what you need to know about changing your health insurance plan. Nothing about health is set in stone, including insurance needs. So, what happens if you have enrolled in a health plan and later realized that your needs or the needs of your family have changed?

Check it out:

How can you change your health insurance plan?
There are two periods of time when you can change your health insurance plan. These two periods are called special enrollment and open enrollment.

Special enrollment is the period of time outside of the annual open enrollment period when you can sign up for a health insurance plan.
Open enrollment is the period of time set up to allow you to sign up for health insurance plans, usually once a year.

How did you enroll in your health insurance plan?
Let’s add another layer to this beautiful layer cake of changing insurance plans. Another little morsel to remember to change your health insurance plan is how you enrolled. Did you enroll through your employer, on the Health Insurance Marketplace or directly with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL)?

If you enrolled through the Health Insurance Marketplace or directly with BCBSIL you have an individual or family plan. Open enrollment for individual and family plans begins Nov. 1 every year, however if you’ve experienced a qualifying life event you may be able to change your health insurance plan during the special enrollment period.

Go to Healthcare.gov or call them at 800-318-2596 if you purchased your Blue Cross and Blue Shield plan on the Marketplace.
Go to bcbsil.com or call our enrollment team at 877-731-4649 to learn your options for special enrollment if you purchased your plan directly through Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois.

Finally, If you enrolled through your employer, that’s called a group plan or group coverage. Group plans set their own schedule for open enrollment and special enrollment. To change your health insurance plan, you’ll have to call your company’s human resource department or the number on the back of your member ID card for specific open enrollment and special enrollment details.

In a nutshell, you won’t be able to change your health insurance plan unless you’re in an open enrollment period or you’ve experienced a qualifying life event outside of the open enrollment period.

Think you qualify for special enrollment?
Review the special enrollment qualifications, answer a few questions and start shopping for your new plan.

What is changing in YOUR life? Tell us about it in the comments!

Originally published 6/8/2015; Revised 2018

Flexible Content

Medicare Eligibility

Unsure if you’re eligible? Let us help you figure out where you stand.

You are generally entitled to Medicare if you meet any of the following criteria:

You are age 65 or above.
You are disabled and have received disability benefits from Social Security or Railroad Retirement Board (RRB) benefits.
You have been diagnosed with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, “Lou Gehrig’s disease”).

Enrolling in Medicare

Learn more about the timeframes for Medicare enrollment.

Initial Enrollment Period

Your Initial Enrollment Period is when you first become eligible for Medicare. This is a seven-month window when you can enroll in Original Medicare (Part A and/or Part B). You can also enroll in a Medicare Prescription Drug (Part D) plan if you are already enrolled in Original Medicare.

Alternatively, you can choose a Medicare Advantage plan through a private insurer that covers all Parts A and B services and typically includes Medicare Prescription Drug (Part D) coverage.

Once your Initial Enrollment Period has ended, you can only make enrollment changes during either the Medicare Open Enrollment Period or General Enrollment Period, unless you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period.

Medicare Open Enrollment Period

October 15 through December 7The Medicare Open Enrollment Period provides an annual opportunity to review and, if necessary, make enrollment changes to your Medicare coverage. During Open Enrollment, some examples of changes that you can make include:

Join a Medicare Advantage (Part C) plan.
Discontinue your Medicare Advantage coverage and return to Original Medicare.
Change from one Medicare Advantage plan to another.
Change your Prescription Drug Coverage (Part D) plan if you are in Original Medicare.

General Enrollment Period

January 1 through March 31The General Enrollment Period offers an opportunity to enroll in Medicare Parts A and B. If you enroll in Medicare during the General Enrollment Period, your coverage starts July 1.

During the General Enrollment Period, you can:

Sign up for Original Medicare if you weren’t automatically enrolled and missed your Initial Enrollment Period.
Enroll in Part B if you had opted out of automatic enrollment, didn’t enroll or dropped your coverage.

If you enroll in Part B after your Initial Enrollment Period, you will pay a penalty added to your monthly Part B premium.

Special Enrollment Periods

There are certain situations when you can enroll in the Medicare program or other Medicare options, outside of the Initial or annual Open Enrollment Periods. For example, if you have health coverage through your employer that is terminated, you may be eligible for a Special Enrollment Period where you could enroll in Part B, as well as other Medicare options, such as Medicare Advantage.

More information about Special Enrollment Periods is available on the Social Security website.