Medicare Advantage

Does Kent County have a Medicare plan without drug coverage?

For 2027, Grand Rapids is looking at 89 Medicare Advantage plans: 20 new, 11 gone since 2026, and 43 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 10 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Kent County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

Medicare AdvantageGrand Rapids, MI

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — If you are shopping a Medicare Advantage plan for 2027, the first useful thing to know is simply what is on the shelf. Grand Rapids sits in Kent County, and Kent County's 2027 Medicare Advantage lineup is set at the county level by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The table below lists every plan available, grouped by carrier, with its plan type and whether it includes prescription drug coverage.

This article walks through that lineup carrier by carrier. It does not compare premiums, benefits or star ratings — for those details you will want the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov or each plan's own documents. What you can get here is a clear map of who sells what in your ZIP code's county so you know where to start.

What is on the shelf in Kent County for 2027

CMS's 2027 MA Landscape file shows 79 Medicare Advantage plans offered in Kent County from 15 carriers. Compared with 2026, 59 plans continue, 20 are new, 11 are not returning and 10 have been renamed; 33 of the continuing plans change something in their terms, with the specifics in each plan's Annual Notice of Change. Devoted Health and Zing Health are new to the county for 2027.

A quick reminder on the plan types you will see repeatedly in the table:

• HMO — you generally use in-network doctors and often need a referral to see a specialist.
• HMO-POS — an HMO with a "point of service" option that lets you go out of network for certain services, usually at a higher cost.
• PPO — more flexibility to see out-of-network providers, typically at a higher cost share.
• PFFS — a private fee-for-service plan; any Medicare-approved provider can choose to accept it.
• SNP (D-SNP, C-SNP, I-SNP) — Special Needs Plans for people with both Medicare and Medicaid, a qualifying chronic condition, or who live in an institution.

The carriers offering plans in Kent County

Here is who is in the market for 2027, in alphabetical order, with the number of plans each carrier lists in Kent County. Names and counts come straight from the CMS landscape file.

• Aetna (CVS Health) — 6 plans (HMO and PPO; 1 SNP). Names in the table include Aetna Medicare Eagle, Aetna Medicare Signature, Aetna Medicare Enhanced and Aetna Medicare Full Dual Care.
• Align Senior Care — 2 plans (HMO and HMO-POS; both SNPs, listed as Premier Care and Senior Care).
• Blue Care Network — 4 HMO-POS plans, all in the BCN Advantage family (Classic, Elements, Prestige, Prime Value).
• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan — 7 PPO plans in the Medicare Plus Blue family, including Medicare Plus Blue + Meijer, Assure, Essential, Giveback, Secure, Signature and Vitality.
• Centene (WellCare) — 8 plans (HMO-POS and PPO; 3 SNPs), including several Wellcare Dual Access and Wellcare Simple options.
• Health Alliance Plan by Henry Ford Health — 10 plans (HMO and PPO; 3 SNPs), including HAP Medicare Connect, HAP Medicare Explore and HAP Medicare Diabetes and Heart.
• Humana — 16 plans (PFFS and PPO; 3 SNPs). This is the largest carrier lineup in the county and includes Humana Gold Choice (PFFS), several Humana Full Access options, HumanaChoice regional PPOs and Humana USAA Honor Giveback.
• Longevity Health Plan — 1 HMO I-SNP.
• McLaren Medicare — 3 HMO plans (McLaren Medicare Inspire, Inspire Plus and Inspire Select).
• Molina Healthcare of Michigan — 1 HMO D-SNP (Molina Medicare Complete Care).
• Priority Health Medicare — 11 plans (HMO, HMO-POS and PPO; 1 SNP), including several PriorityMedicare options such as Key, Value, Vintage, Thrive and Edge.
• Trinity Health Plan of Michigan — 3 HMO plans (Cash Back, Glory No RX and No Premium).
• UnitedHealthcare — 8 plans (HMO, HMO-POS and PPO; 5 SNPs), including AARP Medicare Advantage plans and several UHC Dual Complete options.

The full list of individual plan names — with plan type and drug-coverage flag — is in the table on this page.

Drug coverage and the 2027 Part D rules

Nearly every Medicare Advantage plan on the Kent County list is an MA-PD, meaning drug coverage is bundled in. If a plan without built-in drug coverage matters to you, check the plan type column carefully, since pairing Original Medicare with a stand-alone drug plan is the more common way to get Part D otherwise.

A few program-level Part D facts that apply everywhere in 2027:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100 for the year. Once you hit it, you pay nothing more for covered drugs the rest of the calendar year.
• The maximum Part D deductible is $615.
• The old coverage gap (the "donut hole") was eliminated in 2025; Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs across the year in monthly bills instead of paying at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA income-related surcharges for Part B and Part D start above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

Specific formularies, tier placement and pharmacy cost-sharing vary by plan, so check each plan's own drug list before you enroll.

How to use this list to narrow your choice

Eighty plans is a lot to look at cold. A few practical filters most people use:

1. Start with your doctors and hospitals. Look up each provider in the plan's network directory before anything else. A plan you love on paper does you no good if your primary care doctor is not in it. 2. Check your prescriptions. Put your exact drugs and doses into the Medicare Plan Finder to see how each plan treats them. 3. Match the plan type to your travel and referral preferences. HMOs and HMO-POS plans tend to be more structured; PPOs and PFFS plans give you more out-of-network flexibility. 4. See if a SNP fits. If you have both Medicare and Medicaid, a chronic condition like diabetes or heart failure, or live in a nursing facility, a Special Needs Plan may be designed around your situation. 5. Use trusted, unbiased help. Michigan's MMAP (Medicare/Medicaid Assistance Program) is the State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) for Michigan and gives free one-on-one counseling.

Enrollment dates to keep in mind

• Oct. 15 – Dec. 7 — the Annual Enrollment Period. You can join, switch or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan; the change takes effect Jan. 1.
• Jan. 1 – March 31 — the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period. If you are already in an MA plan, you get one chance to switch to a different MA plan or go back to Original Medicare (with a Part D plan if you need one).
• Special Enrollment Periods can also open up if you move, lose other coverage, or qualify for a SNP.