Medicare Advantage

Medicare Advantage changes in Draper: Jan 1–March 31 window

Salt Lake County has 46 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 6 plans are not coming back, 4 are new, and 22 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 9 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Draper, not which plan to pick.

DRAPER, Utah — If you looked at your Medicare Advantage plan in January and realized it isn't the right fit, you still have time to act. The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period runs January 1 through March 31, and it gives people already enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan one more window to make a change for the current year.

A second chance runs through March 31

This is a different window than the fall Annual Enrollment Period (October 15 – December 7). It is narrower in who can use it and what can be done, but for the right person, it is a valuable do-over.

Who can use this window

The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period is only for people who are already in a Medicare Advantage plan on January 1. If you're in that group, you can use this window once between January and the end of March.

If you have Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) with or without a stand-alone Part D drug plan, this window is not for you. You would generally wait for the fall Annual Enrollment Period or a Special Enrollment Period if one applies to your situation.

What you can change — and what you can't

During this three-month window, according to CMS guidance on medicare.gov, you can:

• Switch from your current Medicare Advantage plan to a different Medicare Advantage plan.
• Drop your Medicare Advantage plan and return to Original Medicare. If you do this, you can also add a stand-alone Part D drug plan.

What you cannot do in this window:

• Switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan.
• Join a stand-alone Part D drug plan if you are staying on a Medicare Advantage plan.
• Make more than one change. Once your new choice takes effect, this window closes for you.

Any change you make takes effect the first day of the month after the plan gets your request.

Why Draper residents may want to take a second look

Draper sits in Salt Lake County, which is served by a range of Medicare Advantage plans from multiple carriers — 37 plans from 8 carriers in 2027, down from 48 plans from 9 carriers in 2026. Plan details — provider networks, drug formularies, prior-authorization rules — reset every January. Sometimes a plan that worked well the year before no longer covers the same doctor, hospital, or medication, and people don't notice until they use the plan in the new year.

Common reasons Draper-area readers tell us they reconsider in the first quarter:

• A regular doctor or specialist at Intermountain Health, University of Utah Health, or another local system is no longer in network.
• A prescription moved to a higher tier or now requires prior authorization.
• Referral or authorization rules feel more restrictive than expected.
• A move within Salt Lake County — or to Utah County — changed the service area.

Program-level facts worth knowing for 2027

Whether you change plans or not, a few Medicare figures apply across the board:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027. Once you hit that in covered drug spending, you pay nothing more for covered Part D drugs for the rest of the year.
• The Part D maximum deductible is $615 for 2026 and $700 for 2027.
• The old "donut hole" coverage gap was eliminated in 2025. Part D now has three phases: deductible, initial coverage, and catastrophic.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your out-of-pocket drug costs across the calendar year in monthly payments, rather than paying at the pharmacy counter.
• Income-related monthly adjustment amounts (IRMAA) for higher-income beneficiaries begin above $109,000 for a single filer in 2026.

How to make a smart change, not a rushed one

Before you switch, it's worth doing three things:

1. Make a current list of your prescriptions, your doctors, and any planned procedures for the year. 2. Use the Plan Finder at medicare.gov to compare how your prescriptions and providers line up under different plans in Salt Lake County. 3. Call the plan directly to confirm your doctor and pharmacy are in network for 2027 — networks can change mid-year in limited situations, so verify.

If you'd like unbiased help, Utah's State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP), known locally as Utah SHIP, offers free counseling to Medicare beneficiaries.