Medicare Advantage

Greenville Medicare counts for 2027 — S.C.

GREENVILLE, S.C. — If you're turning 65 soon or already on Medicare, you probably want a simple answer to a simple question: How many choices do I actually have here? In Greenville for 2026, the short answer was a lot, and the 2027 lineup is now in each plan's ANOC and on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder.

Greenville is in Greenville County, where Medicare beneficiaries could choose from 75 Medicare Advantage plans for the 2026 plan year, according to CMS Medicare Plan Finder data. The 2027 lineup is in each plan's ANOC and on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder — check before Annual Enrollment closes on December 7, 2026.

What "75 plans" actually means

Every fall, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) publishes the list of Medicare Advantage and Part D plans available in each county. Because plan availability is set at the county level, everyone living in Greenville County sees the same menu — whether you're in downtown Greenville, Simpsonville, Greer, or Travelers Rest.

Seventy-five Medicare Advantage plans is a large field. For context, Greenville County is home to roughly 91,684 residents age 65 and older, so the market is big enough to attract a wide range of insurers competing for enrollees.

How many carriers are behind those plans?

The 75 plans weren't from 75 different companies. In Greenville County, 11 carriers offered Medicare Advantage Prescription Drug (MA-PD) plans for 2026. Each carrier typically markets several versions of a plan — for example, an HMO option, a PPO option, and one geared to people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid. The 2027 carrier and plan lineup is in each plan's ANOC and on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder.

That's why the plan count looks larger than the carrier count. It also means comparing "apples to apples" takes a little patience.

What about stand-alone drug plans?

Here's one number that surprised people: for 2026, the Medicare Plan Finder showed 0 stand-alone Part D prescription drug plans listed specifically for Greenville County in that snapshot. Stand-alone Part D plans (PDPs) are sold on a regional basis by CMS, so availability can shift year to year and reporting can vary. The 2027 PDP lineup is on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder — if you rely on Original Medicare and need drug coverage, it's worth confirming your options there or with a SHIP counselor before December 7, 2026.

If you're going the Medicare Advantage route instead, most of the 75 MA plans in the county already include prescription drug coverage bundled in.

Star Ratings in the local market

CMS also assigns each Medicare Advantage contract a Star Rating from 1 to 5, based on quality and member experience measures. For 2026, the Greenville County snapshot showed 0 contracts rated 4 stars or higher in that data pull. Ratings can be updated during the year, so it's a good idea to check the current star rating for any plan you're considering on medicare.gov before you enroll.

Star Ratings are a useful piece of information — but they're only one piece. Your doctors, your prescriptions, and your budget all matter too.

Key program numbers for 2027

Beyond the local count, a few program-wide figures every Greenville-area beneficiary should know as you compare 2027 coverage:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027. Once your covered drug spending reaches the cap, you pay nothing more for covered Part D drugs for the rest of the year.
• Part D maximum deductible: $615 in 2026 and $700 in 2027. Individual plans can set a lower deductible, but no plan can charge more.
• No more "donut hole." As of 2025, the coverage gap phase was eliminated. Part D now has three phases instead of four.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan. You can choose to spread your drug costs into predictable monthly payments instead of paying all at once at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA surcharges for higher-income beneficiaries begin above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

Dates to circle

• Annual Enrollment Period: October 15 – December 7. This is when most people join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: January 1 – March 31. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one chance to switch to another MA plan or return to Original Medicare.