Medicare Advantage

What’s Changing in Massachusetts Medicare Advantage for 2027: 28 Leaving, 47 Changing

BOSTON — Massachusetts residents on Medicare Advantage will see a reshaped menu of plans when the Annual Enrollment Period opens on October 15, 2026. According to the CMS Medicare Advantage Landscape Source Files, the state will go from 103 Medicare Advantage plans offered in 2026 to 97 offered in 2027. Of the 2026 lineup, 28 plans are leaving the Massachusetts market, 47 are returning with at least one change, and 28 are continuing unchanged. Another 22 plans are new for 2027.

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What the statewide numbers mean

The two CMS Landscape files — one for CY2026 and one for CY2027 — list every Medicare Advantage plan offered in each county. Counted once statewide, no matter how many Massachusetts counties it serves, each plan falls into one of four buckets.

A plan is leaving if it was offered somewhere in Massachusetts for 2026 and nowhere in Massachusetts for 2027. By that definition, 28 plans are leaving.

A plan is changing if it is offered in both years but differs on premium, drug deductible, plan type, or plan name in at least one county. By that definition, 47 plans are changing. Importantly, "changing" only tells you a difference exists in the CMS file — it does not tell you whether the change is small or large, or which direction it goes. For that, you need the plan's Annual Notice of Change.

A plan is continuing unchanged if none of those four fields differ. That describes 28 plans. And 22 plans are new for 2027.

One carrier is named in the CMS files as having no Massachusetts plans listed for 2027: Mass Advantage.

If your plan is leaving

If your 2026 plan is not being offered for 2027, you will receive a non-renewal notice from your plan. Two things to know.

First, you have a Special Enrollment Period that runs through the end of February 2027. That gives you time beyond the regular December 7 deadline to choose a new Medicare Advantage plan or return to Original Medicare and, if you want, add a stand-alone Part D drug plan.

Second, if you do nothing, you will not be automatically moved into a comparable plan. A non-renewed member who takes no action generally falls back to Original Medicare without drug coverage. That is why reading the notice from your plan matters.

If your plan is changing

For the 47 plans that are returning with a difference in premium, deductible, type, or name, the document to read is the Annual Notice of Change (ANOC). Plans are required to send the ANOC in the fall, before the Annual Enrollment Period begins. It spells out exactly what is different between your 2026 coverage and your 2027 coverage.

A member who does nothing stays enrolled in a renewing plan and accepts the changes described in that ANOC. That can be the right choice — but it should be a choice, not an accident. Compare the ANOC to how you actually used the plan this year: the doctors you saw, the prescriptions you filled, the pharmacies you used.

The counties with the most change

Every one of Massachusetts's 14 counties sees at least one plan leave or change for 2027. The counties with the highest counts in the CMS files are:

• Essex County: 18 leaving, 22 changing
• Plymouth County: 17 leaving, 21 changing
• Worcester County: 17 leaving, 20 changing
• Suffolk County: 14 leaving, 21 changing
• Bristol County: 12 leaving, 21 changing
• Middlesex County: 11 leaving, 21 changing
• Norfolk County: 11 leaving, 21 changing
• Hampden County: 8 leaving, 22 changing

These are county-level counts of plan activity, not a measure of plan quality.

What to do before December 7

The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and anything you choose during that window takes effect January 1, 2027. A simple checklist:

1. Watch the mail in September and October for your plan's ANOC (if you have a renewing plan) or a non-renewal notice (if your plan is leaving). 2. Make a short list: your prescriptions and doses, your regular doctors and hospitals, and your preferred pharmacy. 3. Use the Plan Finder at Medicare.gov to compare the plans available in your ZIP code for 2027. 4. If your plan is one of the 28 leaving, remember your Special Enrollment Period runs through the end of February 2027 — but you can also act during the regular Annual Enrollment Period. 5. If your plan is one of the 47 changing, decide whether the ANOC still fits your needs; if it does, you don't have to do anything.

Where to get free help

You do not have to sort through this alone, and you do not have to pay anyone to help you.

• Medicare.gov — the official Plan Finder lets you enter your ZIP code and prescriptions and see every Medicare Advantage and Part D plan available to you for 2027.
• 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) — available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• SHIP (State Health Insurance Assistance Program) — in Massachusetts, SHIP counselors offer free, one-on-one, unbiased Medicare counseling. They do not sell insurance.