Changes to Medicare.gov
On April 27th, 2026 WIAAA sent a letter to Medicare Beneficiaries who have participated in Open Enrollment.
Medicare has introduced enhanced security for logging in or creating a new account on Medicare.gov. All users must verify their identity through ID.me, CLEAR®, or Login.gov. We have found Login.gov to have the most success. If you already have one of these, your identity will still need to be verified.
All clients must make a verification appointment prior to Open Enrollment. If a verification appointment is not made, you will not be eligible to schedule an Open Enrollment appointment at Western Illinois Area Agency on Aging.
If your Medicare.gov account is tied to your landline phone number, you must verify your account at home or change the verification number to a cell phone. Please contact WIAAA for further instructions or call 1-800-Medicare.
What to bring to the verification appointment
(Smart)Cell Phone (Pictures must be uploaded from the phone number that’s attached to the Medicare.gov account)
VALID License/ID Card/Passport
Current W2’s (if applicable)
Social Security card
Medicare card (Red, White, & Blue)
Social Security 1099 (2025)
Current username/passwords- Medicare.gov, ID.me, CLEAR® or Login.gov (if applicable) Due to time limits of the verification process you will not be able to retrieve this through Medicare.gov.
If the account cannot be verified at the time of the appointment, Medicare will need to be contacted on your behalf to further assist you. This verification process is IMPORTANT, and you will be given limited attempts to verify. Please bring all the necessary documents listed above to your appointment. Failure to bring these items will cause your appointment to be rescheduled.
Please call Western Illinois Area Agency on Aging at 309-793-6800 to schedule your verification appointment today. Thank you for your cooperation!
UPDATE: We have received an overwhelming number of requests for verification appointments. We are working to get people scheduled in the order that they called. Please be patient with our staff when calling to schedule. We will do our best to ensure your verification is complete prior to open enrollment.