Medicare Advantage

Stars, Not Scoreboards: How Medicare Grades Plans Each Fall

GREENBELT, Md. — Every October, before the Annual Enrollment Period opens on the 15th, Medicare posts a fresh round of Star Ratings for the year ahead. The 2027 ratings are landing now, and if you live in Greenbelt and are weighing your options this fall, it helps to know what those little stars actually measure — and, just as important, what they do not.

Star Ratings are a quality snapshot from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). They are not a ranked list of the "best" plans, and they are not a shopping shortcut. They are one signal among several you can use as you decide.

What Star Ratings actually measure

CMS scores Medicare Advantage and stand-alone Part D plans on a 1-to-5 scale, with 5 being the highest. The score is built from dozens of individual measures grouped into broad categories, including:

• Staying healthy — screenings, vaccines, and preventive checkups members receive.
• Managing chronic conditions — how well plans support members with diabetes, heart disease, and similar long-term needs.
• Member experience — survey results on how members rate their plan and care.
• Member complaints and changes in performance — how often people leave the plan, file complaints, or have problems getting care.
• Customer service — call center performance, appeals handled fairly and on time.
• Drug safety and pricing accuracy (for plans with Part D) — accurate pricing on medicare.gov and safe prescribing practices.

Notice what is not on that list: monthly premium, copays, or which doctors are in the network. Stars measure quality and service, not price or fit.

Why the fall timing matters

CMS publishes the new ratings each October so people can see them during the Annual Enrollment Period (Oct. 15 – Dec. 7), when you can join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan for the coming year. If you make a Medicare Advantage change and want a do-over, there is also the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period from Jan. 1 – March 31.

The ratings you see this fall are for the 2027 plan year — they use performance data CMS collected over the prior period, then applies going forward.

How to use stars without letting them decide for you

Star Ratings are useful, but they work best as one factor among several. Two plans with the same star count can feel very different in daily life. Before you decide, also check:

• Whether your doctors and preferred hospitals are in the network.
• Whether your prescriptions are on the plan's drug list, and at what tier.
• The total picture of premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket limits for your situation.
• Any extra benefits that matter to you, and the rules for using them.

Greenbelt is in Prince George's County, where a number of Medicare Advantage and Part D plans are offered each year. Because availability and quality scores are set at the county and contract level, two neighbors in the same ZIP code can see the same list of rated plans — but the right choice for each of them can still be different.

A few program facts worth knowing

While you are reviewing stars, keep these program-wide numbers in mind. They apply no matter which plan you pick:

• Part D out-of-pocket drug spending is capped at $2,100 for the year.
• The Part D deductible cannot be more than $615.
• The old "donut hole" coverage gap is gone; Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your yearly drug costs into monthly payments, at no extra charge, if you opt in.
• IRMAA income-related surcharges for Part B and Part D start above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

Where to look up a plan's stars

The most reliable place is medicare.gov/plan-compare. When you search plans for your ZIP code, each Medicare Advantage or Part D plan shows its overall star rating and lets you drill down into the category scores. You can also call 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY 1-877-486-2048), 24 hours a day.

For free, unbiased help from someone local, Maryland's State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) — called SHIP Maryland or the Senior Health Insurance Assistance Program — offers one-on-one counseling. Prince George's County residents can reach a counselor through the Maryland Department of Aging.