Robert Brokamp

And when you talk about having to pay higher premiums, that is based on your income from two years prior.

So if you're going to apply for Medicare at age 65, you have to start thinking about really at 63, that'll be the income that determines your premiums.

All right, so we're now in the open enrollment period.

It started on October 15th, goes for the basic version at least to December 7th.

And that's when beneficiaries can change their choices.

So what's happening in the 2026 Medicare market?

Starting with whether any part of this process is going to be affected by the federal government shutdown.

And I should say we're taping this on Tuesday the 14th.

When you're listening to this on Saturday the 18th, things might have changed, but I wouldn't bet on it.

So beyond that, what's changing for next year?

And I think the bottom line really is prices are going up.

What do you recommend consumers do during this period to make the best choices for the following year?

Because some people have as much as 100 options when it comes to choosing Medicare, which, again, when we're working for somebody, you just have the plan that's offered by your employer.

You might have a choice between the PPO and the high deductible plan, but that's it.

This is a completely different story.

There are some online resources, right?

Your site is one of them.

You can go to your site and get some information about different plans.

Medicare.gov also has some information.

And then there's also the State Health Insurance Assistance Program, SHIP.