The DST-SEP notification and

application process is changing.

What you and your customers need to know.

Per direction from The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Special Election Period for Individuals Affected by a Government Entity-Declared Disaster or Other Emergency (also known as the DST-SEP) election process will change effective April 1, 2025.

In addition to changes for affected individuals (“customers”), there will be changes to how you, our brokers, may access DST-SEP information. Please see below for dates and details.

What this means for your customers

Beginning on April 1, customers impacted by a declared emergency or disaster:

• must call CMS at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227)* to see if they qualify for or to make a DST-SEP election.



• may no longer self-enroll into a plan using a DST-SEP.

• may no longer work with a broker to enroll into a plan using a DST-SEP.

Please also note:

• Applications with a DST-SEP election dated:

• On or before March 31: Will be processed.

• After March 31: Will not be processed for the DST-SEP. Next steps:

• Our enrollment team sees if the customer is eligible for another SEP.

• If no applicable SEP is found, the customer's application will be denied, and they'll receive a letter notifying them of the denial.

• Salesforce will be updated with application status.

• An explanatory notice outlining this and other SEP changes will be included in paper sales enrollment kits.

What this means for you

Broker access to DST-SEP declarations will change as follows:

• Until February 28: You will continue to receive DST-SEP declaration notification emails from us.

• Until March 31: You may continue to access DST-SEP declarations on Producers’ University (login required).

• On or after April 1:

• Depending on disaster type (e.g., state, FEMA), you will need to access disaster declaration information on state government websites or on FEMA.gov.

• Please direct impacted customers to call CMS at 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) to determine if they qualify for or to use a DST-SEP.

• Again, customer applications including a DST-SEP election, and which are dated and received after March 31, are no longer accepted by the plan. See the section above for the review and notification process.



• The explanatory notice mentioned above will also be available on Producers' University to use with electronic sales enrollment kits.

This change is designed to ensure the integrity of the DST-SEP, providing enrollment options only for those customers impacted by a declared emergency or disaster.

If you have any questions, please contact The Cigna Agent Resource Line (CARL) or your local Broker Manager team.

As always, we thank you for your partnership!

*TTY users should call 1-877-486-2048

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