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HomeLearn › Turning 65 checklist
Step-by-step

Turning 65? Your Medicare checklist.

Aging into Medicare has a few moving parts, but it's very manageable when we take it one step at a time — together. Check items off as you go (your progress saves on this device), and when you're ready, I'll handle the heavy lifting with you.

0 of 8 steps complete
Start my Medicare plan →
About 3 months before your birthday month

Your Initial Enrollment Period opens

This 7-month window — 3 months before your birthday month, the month itself, and 3 months after — is your first chance to enroll. Enrolling early in the window helps your coverage start on time. Let's get these dates on your calendar together.

As your window opens

Let's gather your doctors and prescriptions

Pull together your current doctors, specialists, and a full list of your medications with doses. This is what we'll use to compare plans accurately — it's how we spot real cost differences between plans that look identical on the surface.

Early in your window

Let's make sure you're enrolled in Parts A & B

Everything else builds on this. If you're already drawing Social Security, you're usually enrolled automatically — but if you delayed because you were still working (or aren't on Social Security yet), you'll need to actively sign up through the Social Security Administration. We'll confirm your status so nothing falls through the cracks.

If you're still working at 65

Let's sort out how your employer coverage fits

Whether to take Part B now or delay it depends on your employer plan, and getting it wrong can cause lasting penalties. We'll walk through your specific situation together so it's handled right.

Once you have A & B

Let's figure out how to round out your coverage

Original Medicare with a drug plan (and maybe a Supplement), or an all-in-one Medicare Advantage plan — this is the big fork in the road, and the one most worth talking through. This is exactly what we'll map out together.

Before you choose

Let's check what help you may qualify for

If your income is limited, Extra Help and the Medicare Savings Programs can lower your costs — and many who qualify never check. We'll find out together where you stand.

During your enrollment window

Let's compare plans against your real life

This is the heart of the Bluebonnet Blueprint — your doctors, drugs, and budget, side by side. We'll match a plan to your real life together, instead of guessing by price.

Each fall after you're enrolled

We'll review your coverage every year

Plans change every year — so I'll reach out for a yearly review during Annual Enrollment (Oct 15–Dec 7) to make sure yours still fits, often for the same or less. You won't have to remember to do it alone.

Want a hand working through this?

I walk people through every one of these steps, in plain English, all the time. Reach out whenever you're ready — there's no cost and no pressure.

Walk through it together →

By contacting us, you'll be connected with a licensed insurance agent. No cost, no obligation.