Medicare Advantage

Honolulu Medicare Advantage Switch Window: Jan. 1–March 31

Honolulu County has 29 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 4 plans are not coming back, 5 are new, and 13 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 3 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Honolulu, not which plan to pick.

HONOLULU — If you signed up for a Medicare Advantage plan during fall Open Enrollment and are now second-guessing that choice, the calendar is on your side. From January 1 through March 31, 2027, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period gives people already in an Advantage plan one more chance to make a change.

This window is narrower than the fall Annual Enrollment Period, and it comes with its own rules about who can use it and what kinds of changes are allowed. Knowing the timing — and what happens if you miss it — can save a lot of stress later in the year.

What the January–March window is for

The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period, sometimes called MA-OEP, is a second look. It exists because a plan can seem right on paper in October and feel different once you start using it in January — maybe your doctor isn't in the network after all, or a medication isn't covered the way you expected.

During this window, if you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can do one of the following one time:

• Switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan (with or without drug coverage).
• Leave Medicare Advantage and go back to Original Medicare (Parts A and B), and add a stand-alone Part D drug plan if you want prescription coverage.

Whatever change you make takes effect the first day of the following month.

Who cannot use this window

This is the part people miss most often. The January–March window is not for everyone.

• If you are in Original Medicare on January 1, you cannot use MA-OEP to join a Medicare Advantage plan for the first time.
• If you only have a stand-alone Part D drug plan, you cannot use this window to switch drug plans.
• You cannot use it to buy or change a Medigap (Medicare Supplement) policy — Medigap has its own separate rules, and in most cases medical underwriting applies outside your initial Medigap open enrollment.

If none of these fit your situation, your next general chance to make changes is the Annual Enrollment Period, October 15 through December 7, 2026, for coverage that starts January 1, 2027.

What happens if you miss both windows

Missing December 7 and then missing March 31 usually means you're locked into your current coverage for the rest of the year. There are exceptions, called Special Enrollment Periods, that can open a door outside normal windows. Common ones include:

• Moving out of your plan's service area (for example, moving from Honolulu to a neighbor island or to the mainland).
• Losing other creditable coverage, such as employer or union coverage.
• Qualifying for or losing Medicaid or Extra Help (the low-income subsidy for Part D).
• Your plan leaving the Medicare program or making certain contract changes.

Each Special Enrollment Period has its own timing and its own list of allowed changes, so it's worth calling 1-800-MEDICARE or your local SHIP office to confirm what applies before you act.

How the dates line up with 2027 program changes

Some 2027 Medicare rules are worth keeping in mind as you decide whether to use the January–March window:

• Part D has a $2,400 out-of-pocket cap on covered drug costs in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026). Once you hit it, you pay nothing for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• The Part D deductible cannot exceed $700 in 2027 (up from $615 in 2026).
• The old coverage gap (donut hole) is gone as of 2025 — Part D now has three phases instead of four.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs across the year in monthly installments instead of paying large amounts at the pharmacy counter. You can opt in through your drug plan.
• Higher-income beneficiaries pay IRMAA surcharges on Part B and Part D. For 2026, IRMAA begins above $109,000 in income for a single filer.

If any of these changes affect how your current plan actually works for you in January or February, that's exactly the kind of thing MA-OEP is designed to address.

A simple way to use the window

You don't need to make a change just because the window is open. Many people look and decide their plan is still the right fit. A short checklist:

1. In January or early February 2027, look at your plan's 2027 Evidence of Coverage. 2. Check that your doctors, hospitals and pharmacies are still in-network for 2027. 3. Run your 2027 medication list through the Plan Finder at medicare.gov. 4. If something is off, compare other plans available in Honolulu County before March 31. 5. Make at most one change — that's all MA-OEP allows.

Where Honolulu residents can get unbiased help

You do not have to sort this out alone, and you do not have to talk to a sales agent to get answers. Free, personalized help is available from:

• Medicare.gov — the official plan comparison tool and rulebook.
• 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) — available 24/7.
• Hawaii SHIP (State Health Insurance Assistance Program) — trained counselors who don't sell plans and can meet with Honolulu County residents by phone or in person.