Medicare Supplement

Savannah Medicare 2026: 91 Advantage Plans in Chatham County

SAVANNAH, Ga. — If you're turning 65 or already on Medicare here, you have a lot of choices to weigh before the December 7 deadline. Savannah is in Chatham County, where 91 Medicare Advantage plans are available for 2026, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Savannah seniors have plenty to sort through this fall

That's a big menu. The good news: you don't have to figure it out alone, and the basic rules of Medicare are the same no matter which plan you look at.

What's available in Chatham County for 2026

Here's the local snapshot, based on CMS Medicare Plan Finder and Landscape files:

• 91 Medicare Advantage plans available to Chatham County residents.
• 11 carriers offering Medicare Advantage with prescription coverage (MA-PD) in the area.
• Georgia has 10 stand-alone Part D plans for 2026, sold statewide (people who stick with Original Medicare and want drug coverage can check Plan Finder for any of these PDPs serving Georgia).
• Under CMS's 2026 Star Ratings, 13 of the contracts offering plans in the area are rated 4 stars or higher.

For context, roughly 50,376 people age 65 and older live in Chatham County, so plan availability matters to a large share of local households.

A quick note on Star Ratings: CMS rates Medicare contracts on a 1-to-5 scale based on things like customer service, member complaints, and preventive care. Ratings can change from year to year, and they're one piece of information — not the whole picture.

The 2026 numbers every Savannah reader should know

A few program-wide figures apply no matter which plan you choose:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,100. Once your out-of-pocket spending on covered drugs hits that amount in 2026, you pay $0 for covered prescriptions the rest of the year.
• Part D maximum deductible: $615. Individual plans can set a lower deductible, but not higher.
• No more "donut hole." As of 2025, the coverage gap is gone. Part D now has three phases: deductible, initial coverage, and catastrophic.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan. This is optional. It lets you spread your drug costs across the year in monthly payments instead of paying it all at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA. Higher-income beneficiaries pay an income-related surcharge on Part B and Part D. For 2026, the surcharge starts above $109,000 in income for a single filer (higher thresholds apply for joint filers).

Dates to circle on your calendar

• October 15 – December 7: Medicare Annual Enrollment Period. This is when you can join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan. Changes take effect January 1.
• January 1 – March 31: Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one chance to switch to a different MA plan or return to Original Medicare (with a Part D plan if you need drug coverage).

Missing these windows usually means waiting a full year, unless you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period.

How to compare 91 plans without losing your mind

Ninety-one is a lot. A few practical steps that tend to help:

1. Start with your doctors and your prescriptions. Before you look at any plan, write down your regular providers and every medication (name, dose, how often). 2. Use Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov. You can enter your ZIP code and drug list, and it will show which plans cover your medications. 3. Check the network. Memorial Health, St. Joseph's/Candler, and your primary care doctor may or may not be in-network for a given Medicare Advantage plan. Confirm before you enroll. 4. Consider the whole picture. Premium, deductible, copays, drug coverage, and extras all matter. So does the plan's Star Rating and its customer service reputation. 5. Ask for help. Georgia's SHIP program, GeorgiaCares, offers free, unbiased Medicare counseling. You can reach them at 1-866-552-4464.