Medicare Advantage

Kingsport Medicare 2026: How Plan Choices Stack Up Nearby

KINGSPORT, Tenn. — If you live in Kingsport and you're sorting through Medicare options for 2027, one thing is clear: the menu in this corner of Northeast Tennessee is not small. Kingsport sits in Sullivan County, where Medicare Advantage availability is broad, and that means it's worth taking a careful look at how nearby counties compare before you settle on a choice.

Kingsport-area Medicare shoppers have plenty of ground to cover for 2027

This article focuses on plan availability — how many options are offered where you live — not on any specific plan. For personalized help, you'll want to talk with Medicare directly or with Tennessee's State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP), known locally as TN SHIP.

What "availability" actually means in the Tri-Cities

Medicare plan availability is set at the county level. So even though Kingsport spills across parts of Sullivan and Hawkins counties, and the greater Tri-Cities region reaches into Washington, Carter, and Greene counties in Tennessee — plus Scott and Washington counties across the Virginia line — every ZIP code is tied to one county for Medicare purposes.

That's important because two neighbors on opposite sides of a county line can see two different lists of Medicare Advantage plans on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder. It isn't a glitch. It's how the program is built.

The Sullivan County snapshot

According to CMS's 2026 Medicare Advantage and Part D landscape data, here's what Kingsport residents in Sullivan County were looking at for 2026; the 2027 lineup is in each plan's ANOC and on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder:

• 55 Medicare Advantage plans were available in the county for 2026; check Plan Finder for the 2027 count.
• 9 carriers offer Medicare Advantage plans that include prescription drug coverage (MA-PD).
• Tennessee has 12 stand-alone Part D plans for 2026, sold statewide — a reminder to double-check your ZIP code on Medicare.gov, since stand-alone Part D options are offered across the state and your Plan Finder results will confirm what's on the table.
• Roughly 35,721 residents age 65 and older live in the county — a sizable Medicare population.

Star Ratings, a CMS quality measure, are also part of the picture. They rate contracts from 1 to 5 stars based on member experience, care quality, and customer service. They're a useful reference tool, but they aren't the whole story — your doctors, your medications, and your travel patterns all matter too.

How nearby counties can look different

Because availability is county-based, someone in nearby Hawkins County, Washington County (Tenn.), or across the state line in Scott County or Washington County (Va.) may see a different number of Medicare Advantage plans and a different roster of carriers than a Kingsport resident in Sullivan County.

If you're helping a parent in Bristol, a sibling in Johnson City, or a friend in Rogersville, don't assume your options match theirs. The simplest way to compare is to plug each ZIP code into the Plan Finder at Medicare.gov.

Program facts every Kingsport reader should know for 2027

Regardless of which county you're in, some Medicare rules apply everywhere:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,100 for 2026 and $2,400 for 2027. Once your covered drug spending hits that limit, you pay nothing more for covered Part D drugs the rest of the year.
• Part D deductible: up to $615 for 2026 and up to $700 for 2027, depending on the plan.
• The "donut hole" is gone. As of 2025, Part D has three phases instead of four.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan: an optional way to spread your yearly drug costs into monthly payments — no interest, no fees.
• IRMAA: higher-income surcharges on Part B and Part D start above $109,000 for a single filer in 2026.
• Key dates: Annual Enrollment runs October 15 – December 7. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, the MA Open Enrollment Period runs January 1 – March 31.

Making the county-by-county comparison work for you

A short game plan for Kingsport-area readers:

1. Start with your ZIP code, not just your city name. 2. Make a list of your prescriptions, preferred pharmacies, and doctors before you compare. 3. Check whether your providers are in-network for any Medicare Advantage plan you're weighing. 4. Compare total expected costs — premium, deductible, cost sharing — not just the sticker price. 5. Ask a neutral counselor to review your choice before you enroll.