Medicare Advantage

Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment for Huntsville Residents

For 2027, Huntsville is looking at 76 Medicare Advantage plans: 15 new, 5 gone since 2026, and 24 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 6 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Madison County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — If you signed up for a Medicare Advantage plan during fall enrollment and now wonder if it really fits, you have a second chance. The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period runs January 1 through March 31, and it gives current Advantage members one clean opportunity to change course before spring.

This window is easy to overlook because it gets less attention than the fall Annual Enrollment Period. But for people in North Alabama who are seeing their first pharmacy bills of the year or realizing a preferred doctor isn't in-network, it can matter a great deal.

Who this window is for

The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (often shortened to MA OEP) is only for people who are already enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan as of January 1. If you're on Original Medicare, this window doesn't apply to you — your next chance to change is during the fall Annual Enrollment Period (October 15 – December 7).

You get one change during the MA OEP. Once you make a switch, the window closes for you until next year.

What you can actually change

According to CMS guidance on Medicare enrollment periods (medicare.gov), during January 1 – March 31 you can:

• Switch from one Medicare Advantage plan to another Medicare Advantage plan.
• Drop your Medicare Advantage plan and go back to Original Medicare (Parts A and B).
• If you return to Original Medicare, join a stand-alone Part D prescription drug plan.

What you cannot do in this window: switch from Original Medicare into a Medicare Advantage plan for the first time, or join a Part D plan if you're staying on an Advantage plan that already includes drug coverage.

The Huntsville picture

Huntsville is in Madison County, where Medicare beneficiaries generally have a wide range of Medicare Advantage plans and stand-alone Part D drug plans offered by multiple carriers. Availability is set at the county level by CMS, so a neighbor across the county line in Limestone or Morgan County may see a slightly different menu of options.

Because Huntsville has grown quickly, provider networks change too. If a specialist at Huntsville Hospital or a clinic in Madison recently left your plan's network — or your prescription moved to a higher pricing tier in January — this is the window to act.

2027 rules worth knowing before you switch

A few program-wide changes take effect for 2027 and can shape your decision:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: Once your covered drug spending hits $2,400 in 2027, you pay nothing more for the rest of the year on covered prescriptions.
• Part D deductible: No Part D plan can charge a deductible higher than $700 in 2027.
• No more donut hole: The old coverage gap was eliminated in 2025. Part D now has three phases instead of four.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan: You can ask your drug plan to spread your yearly out-of-pocket drug costs into monthly payments instead of paying big amounts at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA: Higher-income beneficiaries pay surcharges on Part B and Part D. For 2026, these start above $109,000 in income for a single filer (based on your 2024 tax return).

How to make a smart move — not a rushed one

Before you change plans, gather three things: a current list of your prescriptions with dosages, a list of the doctors and hospitals you actually use, and a rough sense of what you spent out-of-pocket last year. Then compare plans on medicare.gov's Plan Finder, which lets you plug in your drug list and ZIP code.

If you'd rather talk to a real person who isn't selling anything, Alabama's SHIP (State Health Insurance Assistance Program) offers free, one-on-one counseling for Medicare beneficiaries. You can also call 1-800-MEDICARE any time.

Star Ratings — the 1-to-5 scores CMS publishes each fall — can give you a general sense of how members and CMS rate a plan's service and quality. They're one input, not the whole picture.