Jackson Heights, Queens: D-SNP and default enrollment letter help

County on forms: Queens County (Queens)
Medicaid run by: NYC HRA, citywide
ZIP codes (approx.): 11372, 11377

ZIP codes are orientation only. Verify yours with USPS.

Who this page helps

Jackson Heights is known for its garden-apartment co-ops between 34th and 37th Avenues, but many of its older residents live in rentals along Roosevelt Avenue and Northern Boulevard, often several generations to an apartment. Many have Medicaid managed care, some are in HARP plans, and every month some reach Medicare age and receive the plan’s default enrollment letter. Others already have both programs and hear about D-SNPs from a pharmacist on 37th Avenue without ever getting a plain explanation.

This page is for those residents and for the adult children, caseworkers, and neighbors who help them with mail in a language other than English. It explains what the letter means, what opting out does to Medicaid, and how to reach a free counselor. It decides nothing and is not from the government.

What “local” means for Medicare and Medicaid in Jackson Heights

Jackson Heights is in Queens County, and Medicaid is administered citywide by the NYC Human Resources Administration (HRA). ZIP 11372 covers the core of Jackson Heights, and 11377 covers the Woodside side and blocks toward Northern Boulevard (approximate; verify with USPS). On any form that asks for a county, write “Queens.”

The nearest public hospital is NYC Health + Hospitals / Elmhurst on 79th Avenue at Broadway, a short ride south. Many residents also use small practices in the medical buildings along 37th Avenue and Roosevelt Avenue. Each of those, and each pharmacy on 74th Street or 82nd Street, is either in a given D-SNP’s Medicare network or not, whatever Medicaid plan it takes today.

The 74th Street–Broadway / Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue complex is western Queens’ biggest transfer point (7, E, F, M, R trains and many buses), which puts both the Corona and Sunnyside HIICAP sites within one ride.

Jackson Heights has large Spanish-, Bengali-, Nepali-, Tibetan-, Hindi-, Urdu-, and Punjabi-speaking communities; interpreters are available on every line on this page when you ask.

How to get free help from Jackson Heights

Call HIICAP at 1-800-701-0501 and say “Queens” when the recording asks for your county. Ask for an interpreter in Spanish, Bengali, Nepali, Hindi, Urdu, or Punjabi. Tell the counselor you received a default enrollment notice and ask what changes under each choice.
The closest in-person site is RAICES/Corona Senior Center, 102-47 43rd Avenue, Corona, NY 11368, 718-458-7259, Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., by appointment; take the 7 east to 103rd Street–Corona Plaza. Sunnyside Community Senior Center, 43-31 39th Street, 718-784-6173 x411, is a few stops west on the 7. NYC Aging Connect, 212-244-6469, books either one; ask for HIICAP.
For opting out, or for questions about how your HARP or Medicaid managed care plan changes when Medicare starts, call New York Medicaid Choice at 1-800-505-5678 (TTY 1-888-329-1541). If you get home care hours through Medicaid, ask for the long-term care line at 1-888-401-6582.
Medicaid case problems (renewals, coverage gaps, address changes) go to the HRA Medicaid Helpline at 1-888-692-6116. NY Connects, 1-800-342-9871, is the statewide starting point for long-term services and supports.

What to ask, in one sentence each

HIICAP“I have Medicare and Medicaid and got a default enrollment letter. Can you compare the D-SNP with Original Medicare plus a drug plan for my prescriptions and doctors?”
New York Medicaid Choice“If I opt out of the D-SNP, what happens to my Medicaid managed care plan and my home care? How do I opt out, and by when?”
Your plan (number on the letter)“Are my doctors and my pharmacy in the D-SNP’s Medicare network, not just the Medicaid network?”
HRA Medicaid Helpline“Is my Medicaid active and is my address correct?” (Only if your case, not your plan, is the problem.)

Free public help from Queens

These lines are run by New York State, New York City, or Medicare. None of them sells plans. When the HIICAP recording asks for your county, say “Queens.”

Numbers checked against official sources on September 10, 2026. Hours and phone menus change; the official sites are aging.ny.gov, nyc.gov/aging, nymedicaidchoice.com, nyconnects.ny.gov, and nyc.gov/hra.

Default enrollment letter tip for Jackson Heights

In Jackson Heights the letter competes with a lot of other official-looking mail, and it is easy to confuse the plan’s default enrollment notice with an advertisement from a different company. The real notice comes from your own Medicaid plan, names its own D-SNP, and gives an effective date at least 60 days out. Anything from a company you are not already enrolled with is marketing, not the notice.

If you live in one of the historic-district co-ops between 34th and 37th Avenues, your building may have a management office that helps older residents with paperwork. It cannot handle this one. Opting out is done by calling or writing your Medicaid plan, and New York Medicaid Choice can connect you.

Not sure which letter you have? Read the default enrollment letter decoder or the blog post what to do in the first 7 days.

Common mistakes in Jackson Heights

Opting out because a pharmacist on 37th Avenue said the D-SNP “does not work here.” Pharmacy networks are worth checking, but opting out also ends your Medicaid managed care plan and moves Medicaid to fee-for-service.
Writing “Woodside” or “Elmhurst” in the county box because that is what the ZIP or the mail says. The county for all of Jackson Heights, including the 11377 blocks, is Queens.
Assuming that a HARP plan member loses behavioral health services by staying in the aligned D-SNP. Under IB-Dual, HARP services generally continue; ask the plan and HIICAP to confirm.

Orientation: places people in Jackson Heights mention

Orientation only. Listing a hospital or center here is not a recommendation and says nothing about which plans it accepts. Always check the plan’s own provider directory.

NYC Health + Hospitals / Elmhurst · 79th Avenue at Broadway; nearest public hospital, a short ride south
74th Street–Broadway / Jackson Heights–Roosevelt Avenue · 7, E, F, M, R trains; one ride to the Corona or Sunnyside HIICAP sites
Queens Public Library, Jackson Heights branch · free computers for Medicare.gov plan comparisons

Want your next steps in writing?

Answer five short questions about your coverage and your letter. We will email you a plain-language summary of what to ask and who to call from Jackson Heights. Optional callback. This tool does not enroll you in any plan, does not decide eligibility, and is not from the government. Free HIICAP counseling is always available first.

Get dual-plan help Call HIICAP 1-800-701-0501

Prefer to talk with a person right now? HIICAP is free at 1-800-701-0501.