5 Things to Check Before Renewing Your Medicare Advantage Plan for 2027

Every fall, Medicare Advantage members get a stack of mail and most of it goes in the drawer. That is the expensive habit this article is about.

Medicare Advantage plans renew automatically. If you do nothing, you stay enrolled — but you may not be staying in the same plan you thought you had. Networks change, drug coverage changes, premiums change, and extra benefits come and go. The Annual Enrollment Period for 2027 coverage runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and it is the window to make a different choice.

Here are the five things worth your attention, in the order that matters most.

1. Read the Annual Notice of Change

Your plan must send an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) each year, along with the Evidence of Coverage. It is not marketing fluff — it is the legal summary of what changed.

Read it for removals, not additions. New perks photograph well; it is the drug that dropped off the formulary or the hospital that left the network that costs you money in February. The ANOC must reach you by September 30 for a January 1 effective date. If yours never arrived, request it from the plan.

2. Verify your doctors and hospital are still in network

Networks are the single most common reason people regret a plan choice. A plan's network is set for the plan year, and it can shrink.

Do not rely on the printed directory alone. Call the plan, confirm each provider by name, and ask them to note the call. Then confirm with the provider's office that they will bill the plan in 2027. Both sides should agree before you commit.

If you are on Original Medicare with a Medigap policy instead, this concern works differently: Medigap plans do not have networks, but they also do not include drug coverage, which is the next point.

3. Re-check your prescriptions

Medicare Advantage plans that include drug coverage use a formulary — a list of covered drugs with tiers. Formularies are updated every year, so a drug that cost you a modest copay in 2026 may move to a higher tier or require prior authorization in 2027.

Check three things for each prescription:

• Is the drug still on the formulary?
• What tier is it on now, and what will it cost at your pharmacy?
• Are there restrictions — prior authorization, step therapy, or quantity limits?

Also confirm your pharmacy is still in the plan's preferred network. Pharmacy status changes quietly and changes your cost noticeably.

4. Compare total cost, not the premium

A $0 premium plan is not a free plan. What you actually spend depends on copays, coinsurance, and your annual out-of-pocket maximum.

Build a simple comparison for the year:

• Monthly premium × 12
• Expected copays for regular visits and any recurring treatment
• Drug costs at the tier you confirmed
• The plan's in-network out-of-pocket maximum, as a worst case

Two plans with the same premium can differ by thousands of dollars if you have a heavier care year. That said, a lower out-of-pocket maximum is only valuable if the network and formulary actually work for you — availability first, then cost.

5. Decide whether the extra benefits still fit

Dental, vision, hearing, fitness, and over-the-counter allowances are real benefits, and they are also the most oversold part of the decision. Two rules of thumb:

• A benefit you will not use has no value in your comparison, however impressive the brochure.
• Benefit structures change year to year — the dollar allowance you counted on may be smaller, or restricted to a specific vendor.

Weigh the benefits you used last year, not the ones you imagined using.

Keep the plan types straight

The choices are not interchangeable, and the differences drive everything else:

• Original Medicare — Parts A and B, administered by the federal government. You can see any provider that accepts Medicare.
• Medicare Advantage (Part C) — a private plan that delivers your Part A and B benefits, usually with its own network and often with drug coverage. Prior authorization rules apply to many services.
• Medicare Supplement (Medigap) — a private policy that pays some of Original Medicare's out-of-pocket costs. It works alongside Original Medicare, not alongside Medicare Advantage, and it does not include drug coverage.
• Part D — standalone prescription drug coverage, used with Original Medicare and with Medigap.

If you switch from Medicare Advantage to Original Medicare, you will generally need to add drug coverage separately, and Medigap enrollment can involve medical underwriting outside your guaranteed-issue windows. That is a decision to make deliberately, not on the last day of the enrollment period.

One more window worth knowing: the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period runs January 1 through March 31 each year. If you are already in a Medicare Advantage plan and want to change plans or return to Original Medicare, that window exists — but it is narrower than the fall enrollment period, and it does not reopen Medigap guaranteed-issue rights.

Frequently asked questions

Do I have to do anything to keep my plan? No. Your plan renews automatically if you make no change. The reason to act is to avoid auto-renewing into a plan that no longer fits.

Can I change plans outside the fall window? Only in specific situations, such as certain moves, loss of other coverage, or a five-star plan special enrollment period. Otherwise the fall window and the January–March Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period are your opportunities.

Is Medicare Advantage better than Original Medicare with Medigap? They solve different problems. Medicare Advantage trades network flexibility for often-lower premiums and bundled extras. Medigap trades a higher premium for predictable costs and broad provider access. Neither is universally better.

Where can I check plan details? Medicare.gov's Plan Finder and each plan's ANOC. For help comparing, a licensed broker can walk through it with you at no cost.

Sources

• Medicare.gov — medicare.gov
• CMS — cms.gov
• Medicare & You handbook — medicare.gov/publications

This article is general education. It does not guarantee eligibility, benefits, or pricing for any plan, and plan details must be confirmed with the carrier.