Medicare vs. Medicare Advantage: sales pitches are often from biased sources, the choices can be overwhelming and impartial help is not equally available to all

The 2024 open enrollment period, which runs from Oct. 14 to Dec. 7 , marks an opportunity to reassess options.

Beneficiaries choose an insurance plan when they turn 65 or become eligible based on qualifying chronic conditions or disabilities.

People enrolled in traditional Medicare can also purchase supplemental coverage from a private insurance company.

The quality of different Medicare Advantage plans can be difficult for potential enrollees to assess.

The federal plan finder website lists available plans and publishes a quality rating of one to five stars for each plan.

But in practice, these star ratings don’t necessarily correspond to better enrollee experiences or meaningful differences in quality.

Brokers sell health insurance plans from multiple companies because they are unlikely to sell every option.

Grace McCormack , Melissa Garrido : The State Health Insurance Assistance Program , also known as SHIP , combats misleading Medicare advertising and deceptive brokers.

They say in-person SHIP services are not available in some areas, especially in rural areas.

The key to making a good Medicare coverage decision is to weigh costs, access to health providers, current health and medication needs, they say.