4.3 million on Medicare will lose their plan Dec. 31
KFF counted 3.1 million Medicare Advantage drug plan members and 1.2 million stand-alone drug plan members whose plans end this year. Four insurers account for half the Medicare Advantage losses. Open enrollment ends Dec. 7.
About 4.3 million people on Medicare will have their private plan ended on Dec. 31, according to a KFF analysis of CMS plan data published Oct. 27. That is 3.1 million people in Medicare Advantage drug plans and 1.2 million in stand-alone Part D drug plans.
If you got a non-renewal letter this fall, you are in this count. You have to act, or Medicare will act for you.
Who is ending plans
Most of the Medicare Advantage losses, 2.8 million, are in plans open to anyone. That is 14% of everyone in those plans, KFF says, close to the 13% hit for 2026. Another 300,000 are in special needs plans.
Four companies account for half of the 2.8 million:
- Humana: 530,000 people
- UnitedHealth Group: 367,000
- CVS Health: 254,000
- Aware Integrated, which sold Blue Cross plans in Minnesota: 249,000
The drug plan side is more concentrated. CVS Health’s SilverScript Choice plan is ending in 13 regions, which covers 950,000 of the 1.2 million people. Health Care Service Corporation is ending HealthSpring Extra Rx in 16 regions, which covers 190,000 more. That is 6% of everyone in a stand-alone drug plan, double last year’s 3%.
The average person with Medicare will have 9 stand-alone drug plans to pick from in 2027, down from 11, KFF found.
What happens if you do nothing
If your Medicare Advantage plan is ending and you don’t pick a new one, you are moved to traditional Medicare on Jan. 1, KFF says. If your stand-alone drug plan is ending and you don’t pick a new one, you lose Part D drug coverage.
Open enrollment runs Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, CMS enrollment guidance says. A choice made by Dec. 7 starts Jan. 1.
Miss that date and there is a second window. For a plan that isn’t renewing, CMS gives a special enrollment period from Dec. 8 to the last day of February. A request made Dec. 8 to Dec. 31 starts Jan. 1. A request made in January starts Feb. 1, and one made in February starts March 1.
The Medigap right most people miss
People losing a Medicare Advantage plan also get guaranteed issue rights for Medigap. An insurer can’t turn you down for a Medigap policy or charge you more because of a health condition, KFF says.
The Medigap guide sets the clock. You have no more than 63 days after your Medicare Advantage coverage ends to apply. The right only applies if you switch to traditional Medicare instead of joining another Medicare Advantage plan. Keep your non-renewal letter. You may need it to prove you qualify.
Merged plans are a different case
KFF counted another 1.4 million people whose plan is being folded into another plan from the same insurer. They move over on their own. Most of them, about 900,000, are in special needs plans, after a new rule that limits many insurers to one plan for people on both Medicare and Medicaid in a county.
These people are not in the 4.3 million. They also don’t get the Medigap right if they leave for traditional Medicare.
What to do this week
Find your Annual Notice of Change or non-renewal letter. Check that your doctors and drugs are covered by whatever you pick next. The average person has 28 Medicare Advantage drug plans to choose from in 2027, KFF says, so compare before Dec. 7.
For the county view, see Your Medicare Advantage plan is leaving your county. For who is gaining members, see our AEP 2027 scorecard.
KFF, More Than 4 Million Medicare Beneficiaries Will Have Their Medicare Advantage or Stand-Alone Prescription Drug Plan Terminated at the End of 2026, Oct 27, 2026 
CMS, Medicare Advantage and Part D Enrollment and Disenrollment Guidance (contract year 2026) 
Medicare.gov, Choosing a Medigap Policy (CMS Product No. 02110) - Medicare.gov, Plan Non-Renewal Notice
Minnesota Attorney General
Commonwealth Fund