I'm turning 65
Make sense of Medicare before choosing a plan.
- Understand Parts A and B, then the two main coverage paths.
- Check your sign-up timing; it depends on your current coverage and situation.
Medicare planning
Plan your Medicare, step by step.
You don't need to learn everything at once. Start with what brings you here, then use our free guides and tools to work through your next decision.
Independent information, not an enrollment service. PlanScout is not affiliated with Medicare. Confirm eligibility, deadlines, and coverage before making a change.
What brings you here?
I'm retiring
Coordinate Medicare with the coverage you have through work.
- Ask your benefits administrator how and when your job-based coverage will change.
- Before dropping coverage, check Medicare sign-up timing and how your other benefits work with it.
I'm comparing coverage
Look beyond the monthly premium to the care you actually use.
- Gather your medications, pharmacies, doctors, and current plan details.
- Compare coverage and estimated costs, then confirm important details with the plan.
I'm helping a parent
Work through the choices together, at their pace.
- Ask what matters most to them and which doctors they want to keep.
- Make a shared list of medicines, coverage questions, and care needs.
Need care or equipment as well as coverage?
Choosing coverage and arranging care are different tasks. Explore nursing homes, hospice, or medical equipment suppliers, and check what Medicare may pay before you arrange services.
Want to talk it through?
Free, one-on-one Medicare counseling is available through your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP). SHIP counselors don't sell insurance.
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, 1-800-MEDICARE, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options.
Sources
- Written by
- The PlanScout team.
- Corrections
- See something wrong? Tell us. We fix confirmed errors within 2 business days and note the change in the page's change log.
Sources (2)
- Medicare.gov: Get started with Medicare (retrieved Oct 18, 2026)
- Medicare.gov: Working past 65 (retrieved Oct 18, 2026)