Medicare Advantage

Kansas City Medicare Guidance from SHIP and Agents

Jackson County has 65 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 11 plans are not coming back, 12 are new, and 36 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 16 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Kansas City, not which plan to pick.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Medicare is a lifetime program, but a few of its decisions are made in short windows. Miss one, and the cost can follow you month after month for as long as you're on Medicare. That's why understanding the deadlines — and the cost pieces that sit behind them — matters as much as knowing which plan sits on the shelf.

Here in Kansas City, the choices are wide. Jackson County has 49 Medicare Advantage plans available in 2027, offered by 8 carriers. That's a lot to sort through, and Jackson County is home to more than 114,000 residents age 65 and up. But before you compare a single plan, it helps to understand how the cost structure of Medicare itself works.

The four cost pieces of Medicare

Original Medicare and its add-ons are built from a handful of moving parts. Once you can name them, the deadlines make more sense.

• Part A (hospital): Most people pay no premium because they or a spouse paid Medicare taxes long enough while working. It does carry a deductible when you're admitted.
• Part B (doctor and outpatient): Has a standard monthly premium set each year by CMS, plus an annual deductible and generally 20% coinsurance after that.
• Part D (prescription drugs): Has its own premium that varies by plan, a deductible (capped at $700 in 2027), and — new since 2025 — a hard cap on what you personally spend at the pharmacy counter.
• Medicare Advantage (Part C): Bundles A, B and usually D through a private carrier. You still owe the Part B premium, plus whatever the plan charges.

The 2027 numbers worth memorizing

Two figures reshape the drug side of Medicare in 2027:

• $700 — the maximum Part D deductible any plan can charge in 2027.
• $2,400 — the cap on what you pay out of pocket for covered Part D drugs in a calendar year in 2027. Once you hit it, you pay nothing for covered drugs the rest of the year.

The old "donut hole" coverage gap was eliminated in 2025, so Part D now has three phases instead of four. If those out-of-pocket costs still feel lumpy month to month, the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread them across the year in level monthly bills at no added charge.

On the income side, IRMAA — the income-related surcharge that raises Part B and Part D premiums for higher earners — begins above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026 (higher for joint filers). It's based on your tax return from two years earlier.

The deadlines that create lifetime costs

This is where people get hurt, and it's almost always avoidable.

Part B late enrollment penalty. If you don't sign up for Part B when first eligible and don't have qualifying coverage from a current employer, your Part B premium can go up 10% for every full 12-month period you were eligible but didn't enroll — for as long as you have Medicare.

Part D late enrollment penalty. If you go 63 or more days without Part D or other "creditable" drug coverage after you're first eligible, a small penalty is added to your Part D premium — permanently. It's calculated from a national base premium and grows the longer you wait.

The enrollment windows themselves:

• Initial Enrollment Period: the seven months around your 65th birthday.
• Annual Enrollment Period: Oct. 15 – Dec. 7 each year, to change Part D or Medicare Advantage.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: Jan. 1 – March 31, for those already on an Advantage plan who want to switch once.

How the local landscape fits in

Costs and deadlines are set at the federal level, but plans are offered county by county. Kansas City is in Jackson County, where Medicare beneficiaries can choose from 49 Medicare Advantage plans in 2027, offered by 8 carriers. Compared with 2026, 12 plans are new, 11 are not returning, and 16 have been renamed; 20 continuing plans change something in their terms, detailed in each plan's ANOC. Stand-alone Part D plans are counted separately by CMS at the region level, and are widely available to those on Original Medicare.

A big menu is good news for choice, but it also means it pays to compare carefully — and to use tools built for that job rather than a sales pitch.

Where to get unbiased help in Kansas City

You don't have to figure this out alone, and you don't have to talk to an agent to get answers.

• Medicare.gov — the official plan finder lets you enter your drugs and pharmacies and see real cost estimates.
• 1-800-MEDICARE — 24/7, free.
• Missouri SHIP (called CLAIM here) — free, one-on-one counseling from trained volunteers who don't sell insurance.