Medicare Advantage

Star Ratings in State College: What CMS Actually Measures

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Each fall, just before Medicare's Annual Enrollment Period opens on October 15, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services publishes updated Star Ratings for Medicare Advantage and Part D drug plans. The 2027 ratings are out now, and if you live in State College, they're one of the tools you can use on Medicare.gov while you compare coverage between now and December 7.

But the stars are widely misunderstood. They aren't a ranking of "best plans." They're a quality snapshot — a report card CMS builds from dozens of specific measures. Here's what those numbers actually reflect, and what they don't.

What a Star Rating actually measures

CMS rates plans on a 1-to-5 scale, with 5 being the highest. For Medicare Advantage plans that include drug coverage, the overall rating pulls together roughly 40 individual measures. Standalone Part D drug plans are scored on about a dozen measures.

Those measures fall into broad categories:

• Staying healthy — whether members get recommended screenings, vaccines, and check-ups.
• Managing chronic conditions — how well the plan supports people living with diabetes, heart disease, and similar conditions.
• Member experience — survey results on how members rate their plan and care.
• Member complaints and changes in performance — how often members leave, file complaints, or have problems getting needed care.
• Customer service — how the plan handles appeals, calls, and access to information.
• Drug pricing and patient safety (for plans with Part D) — accuracy of pricing information and safe use of medications.

Notice what's not on that list: monthly premium, copays, deductibles, or provider network size. Star Ratings don't measure cost. A plan can be affordable and low-rated, or highly rated and expensive. That's why CMS presents ratings alongside — not instead of — plan details.

How and when CMS publishes them

CMS releases the new ratings each October, timed to the start of AEP. Once the 2027 ratings post, you'll see them on the Medicare Plan Finder at Medicare.gov whenever you look up plans available in your ZIP code. Each plan shows an overall star score, plus you can drill into the individual measure scores that made it up.

The ratings are based on data collected the year before — things like member surveys, health outcomes data, and CMS's own audits. So a 2027 rating largely reflects a plan's 2025 performance.

The State College picture

State College sits in Centre County, and Medicare plan availability in Pennsylvania is set at the county level. That means the plans and ratings you see on Plan Finder are the same across Centre County, whether you live in State College, Bellefonte, or Philipsburg. Availability, carriers, and star scores all reset each plan year, so what was true last October may not be true this October.

Why the stars matter — but aren't the whole story

Star Ratings are useful for spotting quality trends. A plan that has held 4 or 5 stars for several years likely handles the basics well. A plan that has slipped from 4 stars to 3 may be worth a closer look before you enroll.

But stars can't answer the questions that matter most to your situation:

• Are your doctors and the Mount Nittany Health providers you use in the plan's network?
• Are your specific prescriptions covered, and at what tier?
• Does the plan cover care when you travel outside Pennsylvania?

Those are individual questions, and the star number won't answer them. Plan Finder shows the ratings and those plan-specific details side by side, which is how CMS intends the tool to be used.

Program-level facts to know for 2027

While you're comparing coverage, keep these Medicare-wide 2027 figures in mind:

• Part D has a $2,400 out-of-pocket cap on covered prescriptions in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026).
• The Part D maximum deductible is $700 in 2027 (up from $615 in 2026).
• The old coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone — Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs across the year in monthly payments, if that helps your budget.
• IRMAA surcharges on Part B and Part D premiums begin above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

Key dates

• October 15 – December 7: Medicare Annual Enrollment Period. Changes take effect January 1.
• January 1 – March 31: Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period, when people already in a Medicare Advantage plan can make one change.

Where State College residents can get personal help

Star Ratings are a starting point, not a decision. For one-on-one help sorting through what a rating means for the plan you're considering, Pennsylvania offers free counseling through APPRISE, the state's SHIP program. Counselors don't sell plans and don't earn commissions.

You can also:

• Visit Medicare.gov to compare plans and see current Star Ratings.
• Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), 24/7.
• Contact APPRISE at 1-800-783-7067 for local counseling.