Medicare Supplement

Waipahu Medicare 2026: 28 Advantage Plans in Honolulu County

WAIPAHU, Hawaii — If you're turning 65 in Waipahu or already enrolled in Medicare, this fall's decisions come with a lot of choices. Waipahu is in Honolulu County, where 28 Medicare Advantage plans are available for the 2026 plan year, according to Medicare's Plan Finder and the annual CMS Landscape files.

Waipahu seniors have 28 Medicare Advantage plans to weigh for 2026

That's a healthy number of options for the roughly 195,878 residents age 65 and older across the county — but more choice also means more homework. Here's a plain look at the local landscape and the program-wide rules that apply no matter which plan you pick.

What's available in the area

For 2026, Honolulu County residents can choose among:

• 28 Medicare Advantage plans (most of which include prescription drug coverage).
• 7 carriers offering Medicare Advantage with drug coverage (MA-PD) in the area.
• Hawaii has 8 stand-alone Part D plans for 2026, sold statewide, and anyone in the county with Original Medicare can join one. (Many Hawaii residents who want drug coverage instead get it bundled inside a Medicare Advantage plan.)

These are area-level counts only. They tell you how many doors are on the hallway — not what's behind any specific one. To see the plans by name and compare details for your situation, use the official Plan Finder at medicare.gov/plan-compare.

About Star Ratings in Honolulu County

Medicare rates plan contracts on a 1-to-5 star scale each year based on things like customer service, member experience, and how well plans manage chronic conditions. Under CMS's 2026 Star Ratings, 2 of the 12 contracts serving this area are rated 4 stars or higher.

Star Ratings are one data point among many. They can shift year to year, and a plan's fit for you also depends on your doctors, your prescriptions, and your budget. Use ratings as background — not as the whole story.

The 2026 rules that apply everywhere

A few program-level changes and figures are worth knowing before you compare anything:

• 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 deductible: up to $615. Plans can charge less, but not more.
• The "donut hole" is gone. Since 2025, Part D has three phases instead of four — deductible, initial coverage, and catastrophic.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan. This optional program lets you spread your drug costs across the calendar year in monthly payments instead of paying big amounts at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA (higher-income surcharges) kick in above $109,000 in yearly income for a single filer in 2026.

Key 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 for the coming year.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: January 1 – March 31. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one chance during this window to switch to another MA plan or return to Original Medicare.

Missing these windows usually means waiting a full year, unless you qualify for a Special Enrollment Period (for example, if you move or lose other coverage).

How to compare without getting overwhelmed

With 28 Medicare Advantage plans in the county, a simple checklist helps:

1. List your doctors and preferred hospitals in and around Waipahu. Confirm which plans include them in-network. 2. List every prescription, dose, and pharmacy. Drug pricing swings a lot from plan to plan. 3. Think about extras that matter to you — dental, vision, hearing, transportation, over-the-counter benefits — and check what's actually covered. 4. Read the Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) your current plan mailed you in September. Your existing plan may look different in 2026.