Medicare Advantage

Counting Medicare Options Available in Cranston This Year

Providence County has 22 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 1 plans are not coming back, 0 are new, and 12 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 4 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Cranston, not which plan to pick.

CRANSTON, R.I. — If you're turning 65 soon, helping a parent sort through the mail, or just trying to make sense of Medicare before the deadlines hit, the first question is usually the simplest: How many choices do I actually have?

Sizing Up Medicare Choices in Cranston for 2027

For 2027, people living in Cranston have a menu to work through. Cranston sits in Providence County, where Medicare plan availability is set. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) plan data for 2027, there are 18 Medicare Advantage plans offered in Providence County, provided by 4 different carriers. Compared with 2026, 18 plans continue, 0 are new, 1 is not returning, and 4 have been renamed; 8 continuing plans change something in their terms (details are in each plan's Annual Notice of Change).

That's the headline number. Below, we'll walk through what the counts mean, what they don't mean, and where to get personal help.

What the 23 Medicare Advantage Plans Represent

The number 23 refers to Medicare Advantage plans — sometimes called "Part C" — available to people who live in Providence County. These are private plans that replace how you get your Original Medicare (Parts A and B), and most also include prescription drug coverage.

A few things to keep in mind about that count:

• It's a county-level number. Medicare uses your permanent address (specifically, your ZIP code and county) to decide which plans you can join. So a neighbor in Cranston sees the same lineup you do, but a cousin in Kent County may see something different.
• The 23 figure includes different plan types — HMOs, PPOs, and special needs plans (SNPs) for people with certain conditions or dual Medicare-Medicaid eligibility.
• Having 23 options doesn't mean you should look at all 23. Plan Finder on medicare.gov lets you filter by the drugs you take and the doctors you want to keep.

Stand-Alone Part D Plans: A Note on the Count

If you look up stand-alone Part D drug plans (the kind you add to Original Medicare, not a Medicare Advantage plan), you may see a "0" next to Providence County in some datasets. That's a data-view quirk, not a statement that Rhode Islanders can't get drug coverage.

Stand-alone Part D plans are actually sold on a region basis, and Rhode Island is grouped into a multi-state Part D region. If you're staying on Original Medicare, you'll still have Part D options — just check them on medicare.gov's Plan Finder, which pulls the correct list for your ZIP code automatically.

The Rules That Apply in 2027 No Matter Which Plan You Pick

Some things in Medicare are set by law, not by the plan you choose. Here's what everyone with Part D coverage should know for 2027:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100. Once your covered drug spending hits that amount, you pay $0 for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• The Part D deductible cannot be higher than $615. Individual plans can charge less, but not more.
• The old "donut hole" is gone. Since 2025, Part D has three phases (deductible, initial coverage, catastrophic) instead of four.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan is available if you'd like to spread your drug costs across the calendar year in monthly amounts instead of paying a big bill at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA — the income-related surcharge for higher earners — starts above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

These figures come straight from CMS and apply to Cranston residents the same as anyone else on Medicare.

A Word About Star Ratings

CMS rates Medicare Advantage and Part D contracts on a 1-to-5 star scale. For 2026, publicly posted data shows no contracts rated 4 stars or higher assigned to the Providence County service area; 2027 ratings may differ. Star Ratings can shift year to year and are just one piece of information — they measure things like customer service, member complaints, and how well plans manage chronic conditions.

Ratings are useful background, but they don't replace checking whether a plan covers your doctors, hospitals, and prescriptions.

Key Dates for Cranston Residents

Two enrollment windows matter most:

• Annual Enrollment Period: October 15 – December 7, 2026. This is when anyone with Medicare can join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan for 2027 coverage.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: January 1 – March 31. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan and want to switch to a different MA plan or return to Original Medicare, this is your second chance.

Miss those windows and, outside of special situations (moving, losing other coverage, qualifying for Extra Help, etc.), you generally have to wait until the next enrollment opportunity.