Your 2027 sign up window by birthday month
Your Initial Enrollment Period lasts 7 months: it begins 3 months before the month you turn 65 and ends 3 months after that month. If you sign up in the first 3 months, your coverage in most cases begins on the first day of your birthday month; if you sign up in your birthday month or in the 3 months after it, coverage starts on the first day of the month after you sign up.
| Birthday month | Window opens | Window closes | Sign up by this date for coverage from the 1st of your birthday month |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 2027 | October 1, 2026 | April 30, 2027 | December 31, 2026 |
| February 2027 | November 1, 2026 | May 31, 2027 | January 31, 2027 |
| March 2027 | December 1, 2026 | June 30, 2027 | February 28, 2027 |
| April 2027 | January 1, 2027 | July 31, 2027 | March 31, 2027 |
| May 2027 | February 1, 2027 | August 31, 2027 | April 30, 2027 |
| June 2027 | March 1, 2027 | September 30, 2027 | May 31, 2027 |
| July 2027 | April 1, 2027 | October 31, 2027 | June 30, 2027 |
| August 2027 | May 1, 2027 | November 30, 2027 | July 31, 2027 |
| September 2027 | June 1, 2027 | December 31, 2027 | August 31, 2027 |
| October 2027 | July 1, 2027 | January 31, 2028 | September 30, 2027 |
| November 2027 | August 1, 2027 | February 29, 2028 | October 31, 2027 |
| December 2027 | September 1, 2027 | March 31, 2028 | November 30, 2027 |
The window for each 2027 birthday month, for birthdays from the 2nd to the last day of the month, worked out from the Initial Enrollment Period rule in the Medicare & You 2027 handbook. If your birthday is on the 1st, every date moves one month earlier.
If your birthday is on the 1st of a month, every date in the table moves one month earlier: your window starts 4 months before your birthday month and ends 2 months after it, and signing up in the first 3 months starts your coverage on the first day of the month before your birthday month. The Medicare & You 2027 handbook gives the example: if you turn 65 on June 2, your window runs from March to September, and if you turn 65 on June 1, it runs from February to August.
Still working at 65
If you or your spouse still work for an employer with 20 or more employees and you are covered by its health plan, Medicare.gov says you may want to take Part A at 65, since most people pay no premium for it, and wait to sign up for Part B, which has a monthly premium. If the employer has fewer than 20 employees, the job's plan might not pay for your care unless you have both Part A and Part B, so check with the employer before you wait.
If you wait, you can sign up any time you are still covered by the plan, or during the 8 months that begin the month after the job or the coverage ends, whichever happens first. If you already have Part A, form CMS-40B signs you up for Part B, and form CMS-L564, where you fill out Section A and your employer fills out Section B, shows the coverage. COBRA and retiree plans do not count as coverage from current work, and taking COBRA does not change when the 8 months end. To have Part B start when the job coverage ends, Medicare.gov says to sign up the month before you or your spouse plan to retire.
Forms CMS-40B and CMS-L564: what to fill out and where to send them in Los AngelesTurning 65 has deadlines that do not move. Call and Lara will map your dates with you in one conversation.
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Signing up in person in Los Angeles
Besides signing up online, you can contact Social Security to set up an appointment; the Medicare & You 2027 handbook says you can do this 3 months before you turn 65. For help in person, the CMS forms send you to your local Social Security office, and SSA.gov/locator finds an office near you.
If you are adding Part B after job coverage, your local Social Security office is also where you mail or fax forms CMS-40B and CMS-L564. For help with either form, call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778).
Find your Social Security office at SSA.gov/locator Is there a Medicare office near me in Los Angeles County?What Medicare costs at 65 in 2027
Most people pay no monthly premium for Part A, because they or a spouse paid Medicare taxes long enough while working, generally at least 10 years. Part B has a monthly premium: $202.90 in 2026, and the 2026 Medicare Trustees Report projects $209.50 for 2027, a projection until CMS announces the official amount.
If your income is higher, Medicare may add an extra charge to your Part B premium, based on your tax return from 2 years earlier. If you add drug coverage, CMS has set two Part D limits for 2027: a plan's deductible can be no more than $700, and once your out of pocket costs for covered drugs reach $2,400, you pay $0 for them for the rest of the year. If you sign up for Part B late without a Special Enrollment Period, your premium may go up 10 percent for each full 12 months you could have had Part B, for as long as you have Part B.
How Much Will Medicare Cost in 2027?Your first choice: Medicare Advantage or Medigap with Part D
With Part A and Part B in place, you choose how to get the rest of your coverage. A Medicare Advantage plan is a Medicare approved plan from a private company that bundles your Part A, Part B and usually Part D, and you may need to use doctors in its network. With Original Medicare you can use any doctor or hospital in the U.S. that takes Medicare, add a separate Part D drug plan, and buy a Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) policy if you want help with costs Original Medicare does not pay, like your 20 percent coinsurance.
Medigap is sold by private insurance companies, and you pay its monthly premium in addition to the Part B premium. You cannot buy Medigap to cover costs in a Medicare Advantage plan, and you cannot have drug coverage in both Medigap and a Medicare drug plan. Your Medigap Open Enrollment Period is the 6 months that begin the first month you have Part B and are 65 or older; after it, you may not be able to buy a Medigap policy, or it may cost more. If you delay Part B because of coverage from current work, that period does not start until you get Part B. Whichever road you take, Medicare.gov says to get drug coverage when you first get Part A or Part B, and not to go 63 days or more without creditable drug coverage, to avoid the Part D late enrollment penalty.
Documents to have ready
To sign up online you need a my Social Security account. Medicare now requires that you be a U.S. citizen or national, a lawful permanent resident (green card holder), or in one of the two other groups the Medicare & You 2027 handbook names: Cuban-Haitian entrants and COFA migrants living in the U.S. lawfully. Social Security confirms that you meet these requirements, so keep your proof of status at hand.
If you are adding Part B after job coverage, have form CMS-40B, which asks for your Medicare Number and the dates you or your spouse worked and had coverage, and form CMS-L564, with your name, Social Security number and your employer's name and address in Section A, and your employer's dates and signature in Section B. Your welcome package brings your Medicare card with your Medicare Number, which you need to join a plan or buy supplemental insurance. For your first plan choice, bring a list of your doctors and your prescriptions with their doses.