Medicare Special Enrollment Periods: The Hurricane Rule and Other Ways to Change Coverage in Florida

Two full calendar months after the emergency ends. That is how long a Florida Medicare beneficiary who missed an enrollment deadline because of a declared emergency gets to make that change, under the disaster Special Enrollment Period in 42 CFR 422.62(b)(18) and 423.38(c)(23). If the declaration never names an end date, the window is capped at 14 full calendar months.

Timing matters this week. Medicare Open Enrollment opens Thursday, October 15, and runs through December 7, 2026, with changes taking effect January 1, 2027. Hurricane Isaias came ashore near Destin about 9:30 p.m. EDT on Friday, October 9, as a Category 2 storm with 105 mph winds. Plenty of people in the Panhandle are going to spend the next few weeks on roofs, insurance adjusters and FEMA paperwork, not on comparing Medicare coverage (the home-claim deadlines are in how long you have to file a hurricane claim in Florida). The rules below are what you have to work with if the storm costs you a deadline.

Source: CMS, Medicare Monthly Enrollment, Florida, June 2026; FEMA, EM-3655-FL declaration data (OpenFEMA); 42 CFR 422.62.

What a Special Enrollment Period is

Medicare runs on windows. Outside of them, you generally can't join, switch or drop a Medicare Advantage plan or a Part D drug plan, and you can't sign up for Part B without waiting for the next General Enrollment Period. A Special Enrollment Period (SEP) is a window that opens because something happened to you: you moved, lost other coverage, qualified for Medicaid, or got caught in a declared emergency.

Here are the regular windows between now and spring, so the SEPs make sense against them.

Source: 42 CFR 422.62(a); Medicare.gov, Joining a plan; Medicare.gov, When does Medicare coverage start; Medicare & You 2027.

For most people, Open Enrollment is the answer this fall. If you want different coverage for 2027 and you can get it done by December 7, use Open Enrollment and don't worry about the rest of this post. The national changes for 2027 are in my 2027 Open Enrollment post; the dates and federal rules there apply in Florida too.

SEPs matter for the people Open Enrollment doesn't fit: someone whose other deadline ran out while they were evacuated, someone who moves in March, someone who loses job-based coverage in May.

The disaster SEP, condition by condition

The rule is the same in the Medicare Advantage regulation and the Part D regulation, and CMS restates it in section 30.6.25 of its enrollment and disenrollment guidance for contract year 2027. You qualify if all three of these are true:

1. Where you live. You live, or lived when the SEP started, in an area where a federal, state or local government entity declared an emergency or major disaster. Or you live somewhere else but rely on someone in the affected area to help you make healthcare decisions, such as a daughter in Pensacola who handles your paperwork.
2. Another window was open. You were eligible for some other election period during that time: Open Enrollment, your Initial Enrollment Period, a moving SEP, an employer-coverage SEP.
3. The emergency is why you missed it. You didn't make an election during that other window because of the disaster.

That third condition is the one people skip. This is not a blanket do-over for everyone in a declared county. It's a way to make a change you were already allowed to make and couldn't, because the storm got in the way.

When it starts. On the earliest of the date the declaration is made, the incident start date, or the start date named in the declaration.

When it ends. Two full calendar months after the end of the incident. The end is the date in the declaration, or the date the end is announced, or the date the emergency ends automatically under state or local law. If none of those is ever set, the incident end defaults to one year after the SEP started, which puts the outside limit at 14 full calendar months. A renewal or extension moves that count: it then runs from the renewal or extension date.

The end-date math is where people go wrong, so here it is worked out. Florida's order has a built-in end: Executive Order 26-202, signed October 6, says it expires 60 days from that date unless extended, which is December 5, 2026. FEMA's EM-3655-FL has no incident end date yet. Both started on October 6.

Source: 42 CFR 422.62(b)(18) and 423.38(c)(23); CMS enrollment and disenrollment guidance, CY 2027, sec. 30.6.25. Florida EO 26-202, Section 14 (expires 60 days from Oct 6, 2026 unless extended); FEMA, EM-3655-FL declaration data (OpenFEMA) (incident start Oct 6, no end date as of Oct 12). Rows marked hypothetical are invented to show the math.

Notice what the "two full calendar months" wording does. An order that expires on December 5 doesn't give you until February 5. The rest of December doesn't count as a full month, so the window runs through all of January and all of February. If the state extends its order, or FEMA sets a later end date, the window moves. Your county may be covered by both declarations; which end date applies to your request is something to confirm with 1-800-MEDICARE or SHINE rather than assume.

The change itself takes effect on the first of the month after the plan gets your request, per CMS. So the SEP gives you a later chance to act; it doesn't backdate coverage.

Isaias: the declarations as of October 12

Two declarations cover parts of Florida right now.

• State: Governor DeSantis declared a state of emergency in Executive Order 26-202 on October 6, when the system was still Tropical Depression Nine, and amended it with EO 26-211 on October 7 and EO 26-212 on October 10. The amendments changed the county list, so check the latest order for your county rather than relying on a count from a press release. The order expires December 5, 2026 unless extended, and the amendments expire with it.
• Federal: FEMA's emergency declaration EM-3655-FL, dated October 9, lists 27 Florida counties with an incident start of October 6 and no end date yet. It is an emergency declaration, not a major disaster declaration.

CMS doesn't have to announce anything for the SEP to exist. The regulation turns it on by its own terms whenever a qualifying declaration is in place. As of October 12 I haven't seen CMS post an Isaias-specific notice, so don't expect a letter. If you think you qualify, call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227, TTY 1-877-486-2048) or SHINE and say so. The plan, or 1-800-MEDICARE if you go through them, checks whether you meet the conditions.

Who could actually use it this fall? A few hypothetical cases:

• Say you turned 65 in July. Your Initial Enrollment Period ends October 31. You meant to pick a drug plan the week Isaias hit, then spent two weeks at your sister's place in Dothan. That missed window is what the disaster SEP is for.
• Say you moved from Fort Walton Beach to Tallahassee in August. Your moving SEP was open through October. If the storm kept you from switching plans, the same logic applies.
• Say you lose your power, your phone and your mail until mid-December, and Open Enrollment closes on December 7 without you. If the declaration still covers your county, the disaster SEP may let you make that Open Enrollment change later. Call 1-800-MEDICARE and ask how the effective date would work in your case before you count on January 1.

CMS's disaster Q&A also says that if you can't prove where you lived, you can attest to it. Expect the plan or 1-800-MEDICARE to ask which county you lived in and what you missed.

Missed Part A or Part B sign-up? A separate rule

The SEP above is for Medicare Advantage and Part D. Signing up for Medicare itself, Part A and Part B, runs through Social Security and has its own emergency rule in 42 CFR 406.27 and 407.23, for emergencies starting January 1, 2023 or later.

It covers people who were prevented from submitting a timely Medicare enrollment request by a federal, state or locally declared emergency, where the person (or an authorized representative, legal guardian or healthcare decision-maker) lived in the affected area during the declaration. It starts on the earlier of the declaration date or the start date in the declaration, and it ends 6 months after the declaration's end date, or after any extension ends. Coverage starts the first of the month after you enroll.

Applied to Florida's order: if EO 26-202 expires as written on December 5, 2026, six months after that end date is June 5, 2027. If the order is extended, or you're relying on FEMA's declaration, the date moves, so confirm your own deadline with Social Security or 1-800-MEDICARE.

After you sign up for Part A or Part B through an exceptional-situation SEP like this one, Medicare.gov says you then get 2 months to join a Medicare Advantage plan or a Part D drug plan. So the sequence is Part B first, plan second, and the second clock is short.

Part A / Part B sign-up (406.27, 407.23)6 monthsMedicare Advantage / Part D change (422.62, 423.38)2 months

Source: 42 CFR 407.23; 42 CFR 422.62; Medicare.gov, Special Enrollment Periods

Show the numbers

Rule	Window after the incident ends
Part A / Part B sign-up (406.27, 407.23)	6 months
Medicare Advantage / Part D change (422.62, 423.38)	2 months

The other SEPs Floridians use most

The disaster SEP gets the attention after a hurricane, but it isn't the one I'd expect most Floridians to need in a normal year. These come up far more often.

Source: Medicare.gov, Special Enrollment Periods; 42 CFR 422.62; 42 CFR 423.38; 42 CFR 406.24; 42 CFR 407.23; Medicare & You 2027; CMS guidance CY 2027. Not every SEP is listed.

Moving to or from Florida

Medicare Advantage plans and Part D plans are tied to where you permanently live. Move from Ohio to Ocala, or from Miami-Dade to Gulf Breeze, and your old plan may no longer serve your address, or you may simply have new options. The moving SEP opens when you move and runs for 2 full months after. If you tell your plan before the move, it starts the month before you move.

Spending the winter in Florida is not moving. If your permanent home stays up north, a different set of rules decides how long your plan follows you, and I covered them in Medicare rules for snowbirds.

Losing job-based coverage: the COBRA trap

Two different SEPs apply when work coverage ends, and they treat COBRA in opposite ways.

For Part B, only group coverage from current employment (yours or your spouse's) holds your place. You get 8 months starting the month after the job or the coverage ends, whichever comes first. COBRA, retiree coverage and VA coverage don't count as current-employment coverage, and the 8 months run whether or not you take COBRA. Someone who keeps COBRA for 18 months and then signs up for Part B has blown the window and is looking at the General Enrollment Period and a possible late penalty.

For Medicare Advantage and Part D, losing employer or union coverage of any kind, COBRA included, opens a 2-month window after the month it ends.

So when COBRA ends, you may still be fine for a drug plan and badly late for Part B. Check the Part B date first. 42 CFR 406.24(b)(2) puts the end at the last day of the eighth consecutive month without current-employment group coverage.

Medicaid and Extra Help

People with both Medicare and Medicaid, or with Extra Help paying drug costs, can change coverage once per calendar month. CMS guidance is specific about what that covers: moving into any stand-alone drug plan. It doesn't allow joining a Medicare Advantage plan with drug coverage or switching between those plans. It also doesn't apply to someone a plan has identified as at risk under a drug management program. If you lose Medicaid, a separate SEP gives you 3 full months from the loss or the notice, whichever is later. The plan options are on our Medicare Part D in Florida page.

Florida by the numbers

CMS counted 5,334,437 Floridians on Medicare in June 2026. 3,046,820 of them, 57.1%, were in Medicare Advantage or another health plan rather than Original Medicare. That share was 46.1% in June 2019. Every one of those plan enrollments has an enrollment window attached, which is why the plan-side SEPs matter so much here.

• Medicare Advantage & other plans
• Original Medicare

40.0%45.0%50.0%55.0%60.0%

57.1%42.9%

20192021202320252026

Source: CMS, Medicare Monthly Enrollment, Florida, June 2019 to June 2026

Show the numbers

	Medicare Advantage & other plans	Original Medicare
2019	46.1%	53.9%
2020	48.4%	51.6%
2021	50.8%	49.2%
2022	52.8%	47.2%
2023	54.7%	45.3%
2024	56.2%	43.8%
2025	56.8%	43.2%
2026	57.1%	42.9%

The storm counties look a bit different. FEMA's EM-3655-FL list covers 27 counties, from Escambia in the west to Citrus on the Gulf coast north of Tampa. Together they had 491,597 Medicare beneficiaries in June 2026, and 51.3% were in Medicare Advantage or other plans, lower than the statewide 57.1%. Okaloosa, where Isaias came ashore, was the lowest of the 27 at 35.4%.

A county being on the list says the declaration covers it. It doesn't say how hard the storm hit there.

Escambia77,314Citrus67,394Leon53,686Okaloosa47,309Santa Rosa45,116Bay44,528Walton20,690

Source: CMS, Medicare Monthly Enrollment, Florida, June 2026; county list from FEMA, EM-3655-FL declaration data (OpenFEMA)

Show the numbers

County	Beneficiaries
Escambia	77,314
Citrus	67,394
Leon	53,686
Okaloosa	47,309
Santa Rosa	45,116
Bay	44,528
Walton	20,690

Source: CMS, Medicare Monthly Enrollment, Florida, June 2026; FEMA, EM-3655-FL declaration data (OpenFEMA). Counts are all beneficiaries by coverage type, not by plan.

What to do, in order

1. Figure out which window you're in. If you can make your 2027 change by December 7, Open Enrollment covers it. You don't need an SEP.
2. Write down what you missed and when. Your 65th birthday month, the date your job coverage ended, the date you moved. Every SEP above is counted from an event, and the person on the phone will ask.
3. Check your county against the declarations. The state order and FEMA's list are linked above. Note that the list can change as orders are amended.
4. Call 1-800-MEDICARE or SHINE. SHINE is Florida's State Health Insurance Assistance Program, run by the Department of Elder Affairs with local Area Agencies on Aging. Its volunteer counselors don't charge and are unbiased. Reach them through the Elder Helpline, 1-800-96-ELDER (1-800-963-5337).
5. Compare on Medicare.gov. The Medicare.gov plan finder shows what serves your permanent address. Use your home address, even if you're staying somewhere else while repairs happen.
6. Don't wait for the end date. The disaster SEP ends two full months after the emergency ends, but a Part B sign-up or a plan change takes effect the month after you act. Every month you wait is a month without the coverage you meant to have.

More on how Medicare works here is on our Medicare in Florida page.

Special Enrollment Period questions

Is there a Medicare special enrollment period for hurricanes?

Yes. If you live in an area under a federal, state or local emergency or disaster declaration and the emergency kept you from using another enrollment window, you can join, switch or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan until two full calendar months after the incident ends. If no end date is set, the limit is 14 full calendar months.

Does everyone in a declared county get a special enrollment period?

No. You must have been eligible for another election period at the time and not made your election because of the disaster. It is a way to make a change you were already allowed to make, not a blanket do-over.

Does COBRA count for the Medicare Part B special enrollment period?

No. COBRA, retiree coverage and VA coverage don't count as coverage from current employment. You have 8 months after the job or the coverage ends, whichever is first, to sign up for Part B without a penalty, whether or not you take COBRA.

How long is the Medicare special enrollment period after moving?

It starts when you move and lasts 2 full months after the move. If you tell your plan before you move, it starts the month before the month you move.

Who can help me with a Medicare special enrollment period in Florida?

Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) or SHINE, Florida's State Health Insurance Assistance Program, through the Elder Helpline at 1-800-963-5337.

Federal Medicare rules, your plan's own documents and the terms of each declaration control what applies to you. Confirm your situation with 1-800-MEDICARE, SHINE or a licensed agent, and talk to an attorney for legal questions.

Sources

1. eCFR: 42 CFR 422.62, election of coverage under an MA plan (current as of Oct 8, 2026)
2. eCFR: 42 CFR 423.38, enrollment periods for Part D
3. eCFR: 42 CFR 406.27, special enrollment periods for exceptional conditions (Part A)
4. eCFR: 42 CFR 407.23, special enrollment periods for exceptional conditions (Part B)
5. eCFR: 42 CFR 406.24, special enrollment period related to group health plan coverage
6. CMS: Medicare Advantage and Part D Enrollment and Disenrollment Guidance, CY 2027 (updated Aug 25, 2026)
7. CMS: Medicare Advantage and Part D Enrollment and Disenrollment Guidance, CY 2026
8. CMS: Medicare beneficiary disaster enrollment Q&As
9. Medicare.gov: Special Enrollment Periods
10. Medicare.gov: Joining a plan
11. Medicare.gov: When does Medicare coverage start
12. CMS: Medicare & You 2027 handbook
13. Medicare.gov: Plan finder
14. FEMA: OpenFEMA disaster declarations, EM-3655-FL (Hurricane Isaias)
15. Executive Office of the Governor: Executive Orders (EO 26-202, 26-211, 26-212)
16. Executive Order 26-202 (Oct 6, 2026)
17. Executive Order 26-212 (Oct 10, 2026)
18. Florida Division of Emergency Management: Hurricane Isaias update, Oct 11, 2026
19. CMS: Medicare Monthly Enrollment (Florida state and county, June 2019 to June 2026)
20. Florida SHINE program
21. Florida Department of Elder Affairs: contact and Elder Helpline