Nearly 1 Million Medicare Advantage Members Face Losing Their Plans December 31

If your plan is being non-renewed, you should receive a non-renewal notice dated October 2.

Don't confuse this with the routine Annual Notice of Change that Medicare Advantage members receive when their plan is continuing but its benefits, costs or rules are changing. A non-renewal notice means the plan itself is going away for you in 2027.

Keep that letter. It may be important documentation of your special enrollment and Medigap rights.

Medicare's Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026.

During that period, you can compare your 2027 Medicare Advantage options and Medicare prescription drug plans. CMS says Medicare beneficiaries can compare 2027 coverage at Medicare.gov during this enrollment period.

If you don't choose another Medicare Advantage plan before your current plan ends, you'll be enrolled in Original Medicare when your current plan ends. Medicare says people whose Medicare Advantage plan isn't renewed have a Special Enrollment Period running from December 8 through the last day of February of the following year to switch to another plan.

But waiting can create unnecessary complications.

If you're choosing another Medicare Advantage plan, don't compare plans based only on the monthly premium.

Check:

• Are your doctors and specialists in the network?
• Are your preferred hospitals included?
• Are all of your prescriptions covered?
• What are the drug copays and tiers?
• What's the maximum you could pay out of pocket?
• Will you need prior authorization for treatments you currently receive?
• Are your dental, vision and hearing benefits changing?
• Does the plan have the providers and benefits you actually use?

A plan that looks inexpensive can become very expensive if your doctors aren't in network or your medications move to a less favorable tier.

Some people whose Medicare Advantage plans are ending may decide that Original Medicare plus a Medigap policy and a separate Part D prescription drug plan makes more sense than switching to another Medicare Advantage plan.

There's an important protection here.

People who qualify because their Medicare Advantage plan is ending may have a guaranteed-issue right to buy certain Medigap policies. That means an insurer generally can't use medical underwriting to deny the policy or impose a pre-existing-condition exclusion when the federal guaranteed-issue rules apply.

Medicare advises people with guaranteed-issue rights to apply for Medigap no more than 63 days after their coverage ends and to keep their termination notices as proof.

That's potentially a very valuable protection — particularly for someone who might otherwise have difficulty obtaining Medigap coverage because of their health history.

This is one of the easiest things to overlook.

If you move from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare, your Medicare Advantage plan's prescription drug coverage doesn't automatically follow you.

You'll generally need to evaluate and, if appropriate, enroll in a stand-alone Medicare Part D plan.

Going without creditable prescription drug coverage for too long can result in a Part D late-enrollment penalty.

So if your plan is ending, don't simply assume that Medicare will take care of your prescription coverage automatically.

Humana and UnitedHealthcare aren't the only insurers changing their Medicare Advantage offerings for 2027.

Aetna is also expected to lose roughly 950,000 Medicare Advantage enrollees as it withdraws from some markets, while insurers across the industry are reducing or changing their offerings.

At the same time, CMS says Medicare Advantage remains broadly available in 2027: more than 99% of Medicare beneficiaries are expected to have access to at least one Medicare Advantage plan, and about eight in 10 current MA beneficiaries are expected to be able to remain in their current plan at the same or a lower premium.

So this is not a collapse of Medicare Advantage.

It is a significant reshuffling of plans and markets — and for the people whose particular plans are disappearing, it requires action.

If you have a Humana or UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage card, don't assume your plan is continuing.

Check your mail for an October 2-dated non-renewal notice.

If you receive one:

• 1. Keep the letter.
• 2. Confirm that your plan ends December 31, 2026.
• 3. Review your 2027 options beginning October 15.
• 4. Compare doctors, hospitals, prescriptions, costs and benefits — not just premiums.
• 5. Consider whether Original Medicare plus Medigap and Part D makes sense for you.
• 6. Don't miss the December 7 Annual Enrollment deadline if you want your new coverage arranged for January 1.

And if you're unsure what your options are, Medicare's official 1-800-MEDICARE service and your local State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) can provide guidance.

If your Medicare Advantage plan is going away, don't panic — but don't ignore the letter.

Nearly 1 million members of Humana and UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans are affected by 2027 non-renewals. Their current plans end December 31.

You have options, including another Medicare Advantage plan or, depending on your circumstances, Original Medicare with supplemental and prescription drug coverage.

The important thing is to compare your options before December 7 rather than letting the decision happen by default.

And there's a potentially valuable protection many people don't know about: losing a Medicare Advantage plan because it isn't renewed can give you a guaranteed-issue opportunity to buy certain Medigap coverage.

This is one of those letters worth opening immediately.