Open Enrollment Starts November 1. A Five Minute Checklist for Colorado Residents

Every fall our phones get busier, and it’s always for the same reason. We’re a concierge insurance agency, and for the people we look after, November means sitting down together and lining up next year’s health plans side by side. You don’t need us to do it, but it helps to know what to look at.

Most of the year, if you buy your own health insurance in Colorado, you’re locked into the plan you have. Open enrollment is the exception. It opens November 1, and it’s the window when you can switch plans, change carriers or buy coverage for the first time without needing a special reason. The closing date and the deadline for coverage starting January 1 can shift a little from year to year, so check the current dates on Connect for Health Colorado before planning around them. Seasonal workers in the mountain towns have a few wrinkles of their own, which we covered in health insurance for ski season workers.

Here’s the short list we run through.

1. Look at what you actually used this year. Doctor visits, prescriptions, a specialist, a surgery you didn’t expect. Next year won’t look identical, but it’s the best starting point you have.

2. Check your doctors against next year’s network, not this year’s. Networks change more often than people expect, and a plan that included your doctor last year might not in the new one.

3. Compare the whole cost, not just the premium. A lower monthly payment with a high deductible can cost more over a year than a slightly pricier plan, depending on how much care you use.

4. See whether you qualify for financial help. Savings on the Colorado marketplace depend on income and household size, and plenty of people who assume they won’t qualify turn out to.

5. Think about what’s changing at home. A new baby, a move, a new business, a spouse turning 65. If anyone in the house is approaching Medicare, their rules change completely, and it’s worth reading up on Medicare well before the birthday.

If that list feels like homework, that’s fair. It’s a lot of fine print while life keeps happening, and it’s exactly the part we’re happy to carry for you at no extra cost. There’s more on health insurance in Colorado if you’d like to read ahead.

The questions look a little different depending on where you live, since plans and prices vary around the state. Folks down south can start with what we’ve written on Colorado Springs health coverage.

Five minutes now tends to save a lot of headaches in March.