ANOC/EOC Production Calendar: Planning Backward From the September 30 Deadline

If you run a Medicare Advantage plan, one date drives your whole schedule: plans must send the Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) for enrollee receipt no later than September 30 of each year. That’s when members need it in their hands, not when it leaves your print partner. The ANOC tells enrollees what’s changing in their plan next year. The Evidence of Coverage (EOC) spells out the full coverage terms. Together they make up the annual ANOC/EOC kit, meaning everything one member gets in one envelope.

Both land just before the Annual Election Period, also called Medicare Open Enrollment, which runs from October 15 to December 7. It’s worth checking the current Medicare Communications and Marketing Guidelines (MCMG) each year for content and delivery details.

The good news: the EOC has until October 15, and you can meet that deadline by mailing a notice that tells members how to find it online. The ANOC doesn’t get that flexibility. Many plans mail the EOC in the same kit as the ANOC, which moves the whole kit to September 30. The volume is big, too: CMS projects about 34 million Medicare Advantage enrollees in plan year 2027, based on plan projections.

For content and formatting rules across other CMS notice types, the guide to CMS-compliant Medicare and Medicaid mail is a good next read.

Count back from September 30 and you’ll see kickoff lands in April. The dates below are for the 2027 mailing, which carries plan year 2028 notices. The durations assume a multi-plan kit, so adjust them for your version count and volume. One term to know: a “lock” means the content is final and any change needs formal sign-off.

To reuse this calendar in future years, keep the days-before column, count back from that year’s September 30, and move each stage to the nearest workable weekday. If September 30 falls on a weekend, count back from the Friday before.

The two mail classes get separate dates because they travel at different speeds. Under the Postal Service’s 2025 Federal Register final rule on service standards, First-Class Mail keeps its 1-to-5-day range and end-to-end USPS Marketing Mail within the contiguous 48 states runs 4 to 7 days. Both dates leave several days of cushion. Marketing Mail travels more slowly, so those versions go to press first.

Before you assign a version to Marketing Mail, ask your postal team to confirm its content qualifies under the Domestic Mail Manual, since member-specific pieces may need to go First-Class. The comparison of First-Class vs. Marketing Mail covers cost, and the mail delivery times guide has tips for getting mail in-home faster.

Here’s the catch: you can’t finalize the ANOC until benefits are final, and benefits usually arrive last. The ANOC compares this year with next across premiums, deductibles, copays, drug tiers, and networks, and every number must match the plan benefit package, the benefit details you submitted to CMS with your bid. Those numbers can still change during CMS’s bid review over the summer.

Because September 30 doesn’t move, a late benefit lock squeezes everything after it. Upgrading the mail class buys back transit time but costs more, and print capacity is tight that time of year. In practice, proofing usually absorbs the delay, and a rushed review is how a wrong copay slips through.

Here’s how to protect the schedule:

Every language and alternate-format version needs its own proof, so one benefit change can reopen dozens of files. The Section 1557 language access guide covers those requirements.

Kitting is the step where each member’s documents are matched and packed together. Each member needs the right plan version, in the right language and format, in one envelope. A typical kit includes:

Build each version from contract, plan, and segment IDs, then add language, format, and LIS status. Give every document a version code and a 2D barcode tied to the member record, so the inserting machine can confirm every page belongs to the same member and pull any mismatch before sealing.

Before anything mails, double-check that the plan ID, effective date, and premium on every page match the plan benefit package, and that piece counts match the member file. Clean data makes this much faster; see getting your direct mail data right the first time and statement mail accuracy from data to delivery.

A mail date doesn’t prove delivery, so build an evidence file for every drop (each batch you hand to USPS). Late or incomplete ANOC delivery can lead to notices of non-compliance, warning letters, and corrective action plan requests, all of which CMS publishes in its Part C and Part D compliance actions records. For each drop, keep:

A documented chain of custody for sensitive mail ties these records to the physical pieces.

Mailing.com produces annual notices and evidence of coverage as part of our healthcare print and mail production, with production schedules built around your distribution calendar and regulated timelines. We print and mail in-house, so your kit stays under one chain of custody from data intake to USPS. On-site USPS verification speeds up postal acceptance, and mirrored production sites across our six facilities keep production running during peak demand, including the September rush.

Your team approves proofs and tracks every run in real time in our Portal. Production runs in SOC 2 Type II audited, ISO 27001-certified, HIPAA-compliant environments, and our HIPAA-compliant direct mail guide lists what to ask any vendor for, such as current SOC 2 Type II reports and a signed Business Associate Agreement.

Talk to the Mailing.com team about your ANOC/EOC calendar and we’ll help you lock in your kickoff date before mid-April.

Does the EOC have to arrive by September 30?

Not necessarily. The EOC is due by October 15. But if it’s in the same kit as the ANOC, the whole kit must arrive by September 30.

What happens if benefits change after the kits print?

CMS posts ANOC/EOC errata with its model materials for corrections. A late change usually means a separate errata mailing, which is why the benefit lock date matters so much.

When should ANOC/EOC planning start each year?

We suggest starting before mid-April if you run many plan, language, or format versions, since each adds a round of proofing.

Request A Quote