Medicare Advantage

Before Dec. 7: check your Sioux Falls plan mail

Minnehaha County has 16 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 6 plans are not coming back, 5 are new, and 15 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 5 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Sioux Falls, not which plan to pick.

Medicare AdvantageSioux Falls, SD

SIOUX FALLS — If you have a Medicare Advantage plan in the Sioux Falls area, the mail you get this fall matters more than usual. Six plans that are offered in Minnehaha County in 2026 will not be back in 2027, five new plans are coming in, and five more are being renamed. One carrier — Wellmark Advantage Health Plan — is leaving the county entirely.

Sioux Falls is in Minnehaha County, where Medicare Advantage availability is set. The changes below come from Medicare's 2026 and 2027 Landscape Source Files, released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) each fall as the Annual Enrollment Period (Oct. 15 – Dec. 7) opens.

What's leaving after 2026

Six Medicare Advantage plans that are offered in Minnehaha County this year will not be available for 2027:

• Align ChoiceElite (PPO) — Align powered by Sanford Health Plan
• Align ChoicePlus (PPO) — Align powered by Sanford Health Plan
• Medica Prime Solution Core w/Rx (Cost) — Medica
• Medica Prime Solution Premier w/Rx (Cost) — Medica
• Blue Medicare Advantage Enhanced PPO (PPO) — Wellmark Advantage Health Plan
• Blue Medicare Advantage Valor PPO (PPO) — Wellmark Advantage Health Plan

Wellmark Advantage Health Plan is not offering Medicare Advantage plans in the county next year. If you are enrolled in one of those Wellmark plans, or in either Align plan on the list, you will need to pick something else or you can return to Original Medicare.

What's new for 2027

Five new Medicare Advantage plans are entering Minnehaha County for the coming plan year:

• Aetna Medicare Enhanced Extra (PPO) — Aetna (CVS Health)
• Aetna Medicare Full Dual (PPO D-SNP) — Aetna (CVS Health)
• Aetna Medicare Signature (PPO) — Aetna (CVS Health)
• Align SecureChoice (PPO) — Align powered by Sanford Health Plan
• Align SecureChoice Gold (PPO) — Align powered by Sanford Health Plan

New names on the shelf are not automatic replacements for plans that are leaving — networks, drug lists and cost-sharing are set plan-by-plan. Compare carefully before switching.

Same plan, new name

Five Aetna plans in the county are being renamed for 2027. The coverage is continuing; only the plan name is different:

• Aetna Medicare Dual Classic (PPO D-SNP) — was Aetna Medicare Dual (PPO D-SNP)
• Aetna Medicare Eagle Classic (PPO) — was Aetna Medicare Eagle (PPO)
• Aetna Medicare Enhanced Classic Extra (PPO) — was Aetna Medicare Enhanced Extra (PPO)
• Aetna Medicare Full Dual Classic (PPO D-SNP) — was Aetna Medicare Full Dual (PPO D-SNP)
• Aetna Medicare Signature Classic (PPO) — was Aetna Medicare Signature (PPO)

If you get a card or letter with a slightly different plan name, that is likely why. The Annual Notice of Change from your carrier will confirm.

Plans that are changing — read your ANOC

In addition to the plans leaving, entering or being renamed, CMS's files show 10 plans in the county that are changing on premium, deductible, plan type or name from 2026 to 2027. Eleven plans are continuing without those flags. The Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) your plan mails in September has the specifics for your plan — cost-sharing, the drug list, the pharmacy network and the provider network can all shift year over year.

The table below lists every 2027 Medicare Advantage plan available in Minnehaha County by carrier.

What to do if your plan is leaving

If your Medicare Advantage plan is not renewing for 2027, you have options:

1. Use the Annual Enrollment Period (Oct. 15 – Dec. 7, 2026) to choose a different Medicare Advantage plan for a Jan. 1 start. 2. Use the Special Enrollment Period for non-renewals, which runs through the end of February 2027. This lets you enroll in another Medicare Advantage plan or return to Original Medicare and add a stand-alone Part D plan. 3. Consider the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (Jan. 1 – March 31) if you enroll in a new plan and then decide to switch once.

If you do nothing and your plan is leaving, you generally return to Original Medicare — which does not include drug coverage on its own.

2026 and 2027 program facts worth knowing

A few Medicare rules that affect any plan you pick:

• Part D has a $2,100 out-of-pocket cap for 2026.
• The Part D maximum deductible is $615.
• The coverage gap (the old "donut hole") was eliminated in 2025 — Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs into monthly payments if you choose.
• IRMAA income-related surcharges begin above $109,000 for a single filer in 2026.