At least 254 Macon County residents are in Medicare plans that won't be offered next year, and the open enrollment window to pick new coverage closes Dec. 7.
UnitedHealthcare is ending five Medicare Advantage plans sold in the county, and HealthSpring is ending one stand-alone drug plan, according to the 2027 plan crosswalk the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services published Oct. 1. CMS lists each as a terminated or non-renewed contract.
The biggest is AARP Medicare Advantage from UHC MO-0008, a $0-premium PPO. It had 170 Macon County members in October, according to CMS enrollment data. The others:
- UHC Medicare Advantage AM-0002, a regional PPO with a $106 monthly premium: 17 members
- AARP Medicare Advantage from UHC MO-0003, a $55 HMO-POS plan: 11 members
- HealthSpring Extra Rx, a stand-alone drug plan: 56 members
- Two UnitedHealthcare special needs plans for people with chronic conditions, UHC Complete Care AM-1 and Complete Care Support AM-1A
CMS doesn't publish a county count when a plan has 10 or fewer members, so the two special needs plans aren't in the 254. The real number is higher.
Open enrollment runs Oct. 15 through Dec. 7. A new plan picked by Dec. 7 starts Jan. 1, according to Medicare.gov.
Anyone in a Medicare Advantage plan that isn't renewed who doesn't join another one before it ends will be put in Original Medicare, according to Medicare.gov. People in a non-renewed plan also get a special window to switch, Dec. 8 through the end of February.
Missouri's State Health Insurance Assistance Program offers free, unbiased Medicare counseling at 800-390-3330. SHIP is not an insurance company.
Macon County will have 16 regular Medicare Advantage plans for 2027, down from 17, according to the CMS plan landscape files. Eleven include drug coverage. Aetna will offer eight, up from six. Humana stays at six. UnitedHealthcare drops from five to two.
Six of the plans with drug coverage carry a $0 premium for 2027, one more than this year. But the yearly limit on in-network costs is going up in most of the county's biggest plans:
- Aetna Medicare Signature HMO-POS, 109 Macon County members: $4,200 to $5,500
- Aetna Medicare Signature PPO, renamed Elite Classic Extra for 2027, 67 members: $4,200 to $4,900
- AARP Medicare Advantage Patriot No Rx MO-MA01, 66 members: $4,900 to $5,900
- AARP Medicare Advantage from UHC MO-0006, 34 members: $4,500 to $7,150
The lowest cap among the county's regular plans rises from $3,200 to $4,700. MO-0003, the plan with the $3,200 cap, is one of the plans ending.
About 2,030 Macon County residents were in individual stand-alone Medicare drug plans in October, by the CMS count. Nearly half, 977, are in Wellcare Value Script, which drops from $9.60 a month to $5.30 for 2027.
Other Missouri drug plan premiums for 2027, with October Macon County membership:
- Humana Value Rx, 306 members: $33.70 to $49.30
- Wellcare Classic, 227 members: $10.70 to $7.30
- SilverScript Choice, 149 members: $94.90 to $119.20
- Humana Basic Rx, 120 members: $16.50 to $13.30
- AARP Medicare Rx Preferred from UHC, 101 members: $125.40 to $205.20
- Humana Premier Rx, 69 members: $126.40 to $146.30
- AARP Medicare Rx Saver from UHC, 15 members: $71.90 to $167.40
The standard drug plan deductible goes from $615 to $700, and six of Missouri's nine stand-alone plans will charge the full $700, according to the CMS landscape files. The cap on yearly out-of-pocket drug costs goes from $2,100 to $2,400.
Missouri will have nine stand-alone drug plans for 2027, down from 10.
Who's on Medicare here
CMS counted 4,331 Macon County residents eligible for Medicare in October. Of those, 1,380, or 31.9%, were in Medicare Advantage. That's up from 30.7% a year earlier. The rest, about 2,950 people, are in Original Medicare.
Statewide, about 54.6% of Missouri's Medicare-eligible residents are in Medicare Advantage. Here's the share in each county bordering Macon:
- Randolph: 42.6%
- Monroe: 35.3%
- Linn: 30.5%
- Shelby: 27.9%
- Chariton: 27.8%
- Adair: 26.6%
- Knox: 23.0%
Medicare Advantage members still pay the Part B premium, $202.90 a month this year. Original Medicare has no yearly limit on out-of-pocket costs unless a person has supplemental coverage. Medicare Advantage plans do, according to Medicare.gov.
Social Security checks go up 3.6% in January, the Chronicle reported Oct. 21. CMS hasn't announced the 2027 Part B premium.