Your Medicare Advantage Plan Is Ending in 2027: Deadlines, Options and Medigap Rights

If a letter arrived this fall saying your Medicare Advantage plan won’t be offered in 2027, you are far from alone. Forced disenrollment, which ran around 1% a year through 2024, reached roughly 10% of Advantage members in 2026 — about 2.9 million people — and insurers including Humana have announced further cuts for 2027. Plans must mail non-renewal notices at least 90 days before coverage ends, which for a December 31 ending meant by October 2, 2026.

The non-renewal itself gives you more options than a normal year, including one most people never get again: the right to buy a Medicare Supplement (Medigap) policy without health questions. Keep the letter — it’s your proof.

The Key Dates for a Plan Ending December 31, 2026

The Medigap right opens up to 60 days before your plan coverage ends and closes 63 days after it ends. Dates shown assume coverage ends December 31, 2026.

The “do nothing” outcome is the expensive one. Original Medicare alone has no out-of-pocket cap, and going 63 days or more without creditable drug coverage can add a permanent Part D late-enrollment penalty. If your letter says you are being moved into another plan by the same insurer (a “crosswalk”), that’s a different situation — read which one applies to you.

Option 1: Another Medicare Advantage Plan

You can join any Advantage plan in your area during the annual enrollment period or the special enrollment period, with no health questions. It’s the simplest switch and usually the lowest premium. Before choosing, check three things that changed for a lot of plans in 2027:

• Network. Look up every doctor and hospital you use in the new plan’s directory, and call the offices to confirm.
• Drug formulary and prior authorization. Enter your exact prescriptions in the Medicare Plan Finder. A familiar insurer name doesn’t mean a familiar formulary.
• Maximum out-of-pocket. The federal ceiling for in-network costs was $9,250 in 2026; many plans set lower limits. This is your worst-case year.

One caution: if you settle into another Advantage plan, you generally give up this year’s Medigap guaranteed-issue right. Moving from Advantage to Medigap later usually means answering health questions, and in most states the insurer can decline you or charge more.

Option 2: Original Medicare + Medigap + Part D

This is the route the non-renewal makes newly available. Under the federal guaranteed-issue right, any insurer selling Medigap in your state must sell you Plan A, B, D, G, K or L — or C or F if you were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020 — with no medical underwriting and no pre-existing-condition waiting period. Plan N isn’t on the federal list, though some states and insurers allow it.

Part D deductible may be up to $700 in 2027. The 2027 Part B premium had not been announced at time of writing; it was $202.90 in 2026.

How to use the right:

1. Get quotes in November. Medigap prices for the same lettered plan differ widely between insurers, and the benefits are identical by law. Ask each insurer how it prices (community, issue-age or attained-age rating).
2. Apply before your Advantage plan ends so the Medigap policy starts January 1 with no gap, and send a copy of the non-renewal letter as proof of your guaranteed-issue right.
3. Enroll in a standalone Part D plan during the annual enrollment period (or the special enrollment period) so drug coverage starts with no 63-day gap.

If You Joined Medicare Advantage Recently: Trial Rights

Two other federal rights may apply on top of the non-renewal:

• If you joined an Advantage plan when you first became eligible for Medicare at 65 and you’re still within the first year, you can switch to Original Medicare and buy any Medigap plan sold in your state.
• If you dropped a Medigap policy to join an Advantage plan for the first time and it’s been less than 12 months, you can get your old Medigap policy back if the same insurer still sells it.

States With Stronger Rules

A handful of states go beyond the federal right. New York and Connecticut have continuous open enrollment, so Medigap can be bought at any time without underwriting, and Massachusetts insurers offer it in practice. Nine states — California, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Nevada, Oklahoma and Oregon — have “birthday rules” that let existing Medigap holders switch to an equal or lesser plan around their birthday each year without health questions, and Missouri has a similar anniversary rule. Those don’t replace the guaranteed-issue window, but they make a Medigap choice now easier to adjust later.

Retiree Coverage, Medicaid and Extra Help

• Employer or union retiree coverage: before dropping or switching anything, ask the plan administrator how a change affects your retiree benefits. Some can’t be restored.
• Medicaid or a Medicare Savings Program: if you have both Medicare and Medicaid, ask your state Medicaid agency or a SHIP counselor which plans coordinate with your Medicaid benefits; your options and enrollment windows are different.
• Extra Help (the Part D low-income subsidy) reduces drug premiums and copays and gives additional chances to change drug plans.

Free, unbiased counseling is available from your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP). If you’re a lawfully present immigrant who isn’t a green card holder, note that Medicare entitlement itself is changing in 2027; see this guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happens if my Medicare Advantage plan is discontinued and I do nothing?

You are moved to Original Medicare on January 1, but without a Part D drug plan or a Medigap policy. That leaves you without an out-of-pocket cap and, if you go 63 days or more without creditable drug coverage, exposed to a permanent Part D late enrollment penalty. You can still pick a new plan during the special enrollment period that runs to the end of February.

Can I get Medigap without health questions if my Advantage plan is leaving?

Yes. When a Medicare Advantage plan leaves Medicare or your area, you have a federal guaranteed-issue right to buy Medigap Plan A, B, D, G, K or L, or C or F if you were eligible for Medicare before 2020. The right starts as early as 60 days before your plan coverage ends and lasts until 63 days after it ends.

How long do I have to choose a new plan after my Medicare Advantage plan is discontinued?

For a plan ending December 31, 2026, you can choose a plan during annual enrollment (October 15 to December 7) or during a special enrollment period from December 8, 2026 to February 28, 2027. The Medigap guaranteed-issue right runs until about March 4, 2027, 63 days after coverage ends.

Should I switch to another Medicare Advantage plan or to Medigap?

Another Advantage plan usually has a lower premium, extra benefits and a network. Original Medicare with Medigap costs more each month but lets you see any provider that accepts Medicare with little out-of-pocket cost. The non-renewal is one of the few times you can get Medigap without health questions; choosing another Advantage plan now generally gives up that right.

What proof do I need for guaranteed issue?

Keep the non-renewal notice from your Medicare Advantage plan and send a copy with your Medigap application. It shows that your plan is leaving and when coverage ends, which establishes the guaranteed-issue right.

This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute insurance or legal advice. Medicare rules, dates and premiums change annually, and state rules vary. Confirm with Medicare.gov, 1-800-MEDICARE, or your State Health Insurance Assistance Program before making changes.