Medicare Advantage

Before January 1: What Boston Enrollees Must Decide

For 2027, Boston is looking at 50 Medicare Advantage plans: 12 new, 14 gone since 2026, and 24 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 3 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Suffolk County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

BOSTON — Fall 2026. If you have a Medicare Advantage plan in Boston, this is the season to open your mail carefully. Across Suffolk County, 14 Medicare Advantage plans offered in 2026 are not being renewed for 2027, meaning the people enrolled in them will need to pick a new plan or move to Original Medicare before the year ends. The names are published in the CMS 2027 Medicare Advantage Landscape, and the list is below.

The good news: if your plan is on it, you have a built-in Special Enrollment Period and more time than the regular deadline to decide.

The 14 plans not returning to Boston in 2027

Boston is in Suffolk County, where Medicare Advantage availability is set. According to the CMS Medicare Advantage Landscape Source Files for 2026 and 2027, the following plans are offered in 2026 but are not in the 2027 file for this county:

• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts — Medicare HMO Blue FlexRx (HMO-POS)
• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts — Medicare HMO Blue ValueRx (HMO)
• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts — Medicare PPO Blue ValueRx (PPO)
• Fallon Health — Fallon Medicare Plus Blue (HMO)
• Fallon Health — Fallon Medicare Plus Green (HMO)
• Fallon Health — Fallon Medicare Plus Orange (HMO)
• Humana — Humana Direct Choice Giveback (PPO)
• Humana — Humana USAA Honor Giveback (PPO)
• Humana — HumanaChoice H5216-249 (PPO)
• Mass General Brigham Health Plan — Mass General Brigham Advantage (PPO)
• Mass General Brigham Health Plan — Mass General Brigham Advantage Premier (PPO)
• Mass General Brigham Health Plan — Mass General Brigham Advantage Signature (PPO)
• Tufts Health Plan — Tufts Medicare Preferred HMO Smart Saver Rx (HMO)
• Tufts Health Plan — Tufts Medicare Preferred PPO RX (PPO)

The table below lists every plan offered in the county for 2027 for comparison. For 2027 overall, Suffolk County will have 50 Medicare Advantage plans from 11 carriers, with 12 new plans and 3 renamed.

How you can tell if your plan is on the list

The clearest signal is a letter from your plan — not from Medicare — called a plan non-renewal notice. By law, your carrier has to send it before the Annual Enrollment Period begins. The letter will say your plan will not be offered in 2027 and that your coverage ends December 31, 2026.

A few tips if you are not sure what came in the mail:

• Look for the words "non-renewal," "will not be offered," or "terminating" near the top.
• The Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) is different — that is the booklet your plan sends if it is returning, listing what will change.
• If you threw mail away, call the member services number on the back of your plan card. They can confirm whether your plan is continuing in 2027.

What happens if you do nothing

If your plan is on the non-returning list and you take no action by December 31, 2026:

• You will be enrolled in Original Medicare (Parts A and B) starting January 1, 2027.
• You will not have Part D drug coverage unless you join a stand-alone drug plan.
• You will not have a Medicare Advantage plan's extra benefits or out-of-pocket maximum.

Original Medicare pays most of your hospital and doctor costs, but it has no cap on what you can owe out of pocket, which is why most people pair it with either a Medigap (Medicare Supplement) policy, a Part D plan, or both.

Your choices and your Special Enrollment Period

Because your plan is leaving, Medicare gives you more flexibility than other members have:

1. Pick a new Medicare Advantage plan. You can choose from the 50 plans being offered in Suffolk County for 2027. The regular Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 – December 7, 2026, with coverage starting January 1, 2027.

2. Use the Special Enrollment Period for non-renewals. If you miss December 7, you still have a Special Enrollment Period that runs through February 28, 2027 to join another Medicare Advantage plan or a stand-alone Part D plan. Coverage begins the first of the month after you enroll.

3. Switch to Original Medicare plus a Medigap and Part D. When your Medicare Advantage plan non-renews, you have a Medigap guaranteed-issue right, which means certain Medigap policies must sell to you without medical underwriting. Massachusetts has its own Medigap rules that differ from most states, so check with the Massachusetts Division of Insurance about which standardized plans are available and the exact window to use that right.

Compare plans at medicare.gov/plan-compare or by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

A few 2027 numbers to keep in mind

If you are weighing drug coverage this fall, here are the confirmed Part D figures CMS has published for 2027:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,400 in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026).
• Part D maximum deductible: $700 in 2027 (up from $615 in 2026).

The 2027 Part B premium and deductible, and the 2027 IRMAA income brackets, have not yet been announced. CMS usually publishes those figures later in the fall.