Medicare plans in Colorado.
Senior Insurance Pathfinders has helped Colorado residents navigate Medicare for nearly a decade. We compare Medicare plan options available in your area against your doctors, prescriptions, and budget, then help you choose with confidence.
There is no fee for our help.
What to have ready
20 minutes on the phone gets you real numbers, if you have these.
- Your ZIP code and your birth date
- The doctors you want to keep, by name
- Your prescriptions, and the dose
- Your Medicare card, if you have one yet
Medicare Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7. This is the time to review or change Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug coverage for 2027. Changes made during this window take effect January 1.
6 common Medicare situations
Turning 65
Your Initial Enrollment Period starts 3 months before your birthday month and ends 3 months after it, a 7-month window. We will help you understand Medicare, enroll in the parts you need, and choose coverage that fits your doctors, prescriptions, and budget.
Still working past 65
Whether you can delay Part B without a penalty depends on your employer coverage and the size of the employer. We will help you understand the rules before you make a decision that may be difficult to undo.
Retiring or losing employer coverage
Leaving work coverage can create several Medicare deadlines. Part B and Medicare drug or Advantage coverage do not always follow the same timeline, so it is important to plan before your coverage ends.
Already enrolled in Medicare
Plan costs, provider networks, prescription coverage, and benefits can change from year to year. We help you review whether your current coverage still makes sense.
New to Colorado
Medicare Advantage and Part D plans vary by county. A move can create a Special Enrollment Period and may give you different plan options at your new address.
Medicare costs feel too high
Programs such as Extra Help and Medicare Savings Programs may reduce prescription drug costs or help pay the Part B premium. We can help you determine whether you may qualify.
Under 65, or covering a family? We cover that side too: individual and family plans, the self-employed, and ICHRA for small employers.
The dates that matter
Medicare has specific enrollment windows. Missing one can delay coverage and, in some situations, result in a late-enrollment penalty.
| Window | Who it is for, and what it does |
|---|---|
| 7-month window around 65 | Initial Enrollment Period (IEP). Your first Medicare enrollment window. It opens 3 months before the month you turn 65 and closes 3 months after it. |
| October 15 to December 7 | Annual Enrollment Period (AEP). People with Medicare can review and change Medicare Advantage or Part D drug coverage. Changes take effect January 1. |
| January 1 to March 31 | Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (OEP). If you are already enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can make one change during this period. Coverage generally starts the first of the month after the plan receives your request. |
| January 1 to March 31 | General Enrollment Period (GEP). For people who missed their initial enrollment window and do not qualify for a Special Enrollment Period. Coverage starts the month after you sign up. |
| Up to 8 months after work coverage ends | Special Enrollment Period (SEP). If you delayed Part B because you had qualifying employer coverage, you generally have 8 months after your employment or employer coverage ends, whichever comes first, to enroll in Part B. Drug and Medicare Advantage coverage often have a shorter enrollment window, so plan before coverage ends. |
| 6 months from Part B effective date | Medigap open enrollment. Your one-time enrollment period begins when you are 65 or older and enrolled in Part B. During this window, you can generally buy any Medigap plan sold in Colorado without medical underwriting. After it closes, health questions may apply unless you qualify for a guaranteed-issue right. |
Dates and figures for the coming year are on our resources page, linked to the agencies that set them.
Advantage and Medigap
Original Medicare Parts A and B leave some costs for you to pay and do not include an annual out-of-pocket maximum. Most people choose either Medicare Advantage or Original Medicare with a Medigap policy to help manage those costs.
Medicare Advantage
Part C. A private plan that provides your Medicare-covered benefits.
- Often has a low monthly premium, sometimes $0, in addition to your Part B premium
- Usually includes Part D prescription drug coverage, plus benefits such as dental, vision, and hearing
- Uses a provider network and may require referrals or prior authorization for certain services
- You pay copays and coinsurance as you use care, up to the plan's annual out-of-pocket maximum
- You can review and change plans during the Annual Enrollment Period each fall
Medigap plus a drug plan
Original Medicare, with a Medicare Supplement policy helping pay many of the costs Medicare does not cover.
- A higher monthly premium, with generally more predictable costs when you receive care
- Access to any provider nationwide who accepts Medicare, with no network
- No referrals for Medicare-covered care. The separate Part D drug plan may have its own rules
- A separate Part D plan for prescriptions
- Switching Medigap plans later can require health questions, so the first choice carries weight
Which option fits comes down to your doctors, prescriptions, travel, and whether you would rather pay a steadier monthly premium or pay more as you receive care. We compare both before making a recommendation.
What Medicare costs
Medicare is not one monthly bill. Most people pay Part B, then choose how they want to cover the rest.
- Part B premium
Part B covers outpatient care, doctor visits, lab work, preventive services, and more. Most people pay the standard monthly Part B premium, which Medicare sets each year and is usually deducted from Social Security.
People with higher incomes may pay more through an income-related adjustment called IRMAA. That amount is generally based on your tax return from 2 years earlier.
For the current Part B premium, deductible, and income-related adjustment amounts, see Medicare's official annual cost summary.
- Your coverage choice
After Part B, your costs depend on the coverage you choose. Medicare Advantage often has a low or $0 additional monthly premium, but you pay copays and coinsurance as you receive care, up to the plan's yearly out-of-pocket maximum. Medigap plus Part D has a higher monthly premium, but usually gives you more predictable costs when you receive care.
- Prescription drug costs
Drug-plan premiums, deductibles, copays, and pharmacy pricing vary by plan. The right plan depends on the specific prescriptions you take, not just the monthly premium.
- Help may be available
Extra Help and Medicare Savings Programs may reduce prescription drug costs or help pay your Part B premium for people who qualify.
Part B premium, deductible and IRMAA amounts: the CMS fact sheet linked above, CMS product 11579. The current edition covers 2026. CMS publishes the 2027 edition in the fall.
What happens in your review
- We start with your doctors and prescriptions
Before any plan names come up. If a plan does not work with your cardiologist or makes an important medication unaffordable, it is not the right plan, whatever the premium is.
- We look for available savings
We review whether you may qualify for Extra Help or a Medicare Savings Program. If a recent retirement or other life change affects your income, we can also explain how an IRMAA adjustment may apply.
- We compare your options
We look at Medicare Advantage and Medigap options available in your county, using your actual doctors, prescriptions, and budget, not generic comparisons.
- You decide, and we handle the enrollment
Once you choose a plan, we help with the application and enrollment. There is no separate fee for our help. Insurance companies pay us if you enroll in a plan through us.
- We are still here after enrollment
When you have a question about a claim, a bill, or a pharmacy price that does not make sense, you can call us instead of starting over with a call center.
You can also send us your details in writing, and we will follow up.
Free Medicare seminars
Free, no pressure, and nobody sells anything in the room. The sessions cover how the parts fit together, what the enrollment windows are, and where the costs come from. Dates and locations change through the year.
See the seminar scheduleWays to meet
In person
10901 W Toller Dr #350, Littleton, CO 80127.By phone
720-961-3954. Most first conversations happen here.Virtual meeting
Sharing a screen makes a plan comparison easier to follow.At a seminar
We run free Medicare seminars around the Denver metro most months.We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options.