Goodsurance
ES

Enrollment & timing

Two Different Letters Are Coming to Medicare Advantage Members This Fall. Here Is What Each One Means.

By September 30, every continuing Medicare Advantage plan must notify members of what is changing for 2027. Members whose plan is leaving their area receive a separate letter with different choices and deadlines.

By the Goodsurance editorial teamJuly 31, 2026

With 2027 plan bids now filed at CMS, Medicare Advantage insurers are preparing to send two distinct types of member notices before fall open enrollment begins.

Federal rules require every Medicare Advantage and Part D plan continuing into 2027 to deliver an Annual Notice of Change to all enrolled members by September 30, 2026. The notice details what is changing for the coming plan year: the monthly premium, copays, the annual out-of-pocket maximum, drug formulary placements, and supplemental benefits such as dental or vision coverage. Receiving an Annual Notice of Change indicates the plan is remaining in operation; the document is an opportunity to review 2027 terms before acting during open enrollment.

A notice of change means your plan is continuing. A nonrenewal notice means it is not. Know the difference before October 15.

A separate document, the nonrenewal notice, goes to members whose plan is exiting their county or shutting down entirely. That letter states the current plan will end December 31, 2026. Members who take no action typically default into Original Medicare on January 1, 2027, without drug coverage.

The Medicare Open Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026; any plan selected takes effect January 1, 2027. Members who receive a nonrenewal notice also gain a Special Enrollment Period running from December 8 through the last day of February 2027, giving them additional time to choose replacement coverage. In most states, a plan nonrenewal can open a federal guaranteed-issue window for Medigap coverage.

Experts advise members not to discard either letter. These notices are the primary tool beneficiaries have for understanding what their coverage will look like in 2027 before that year begins.

In plain words

Medicare Advantage plans must mail a letter to all members by September 30, 2026.

Most people get a letter called the Annual Notice of Change. It lists what will be different about your plan in 2027, like new costs or changes in covered drugs. If you get this letter, your plan is still running next year.

Some people get a different letter called a nonrenewal notice. That means your plan is ending. If you do nothing, you could start 2027 with no drug coverage.

Open enrollment runs October 15 to December 7. If your plan is ending, you also get extra time to pick a new plan after that window closes. Do not throw either letter away. Read it carefully.

Understand the basics first

Source: 24/7 Wall St.
Read at the source →

More news

Other stories on what is moving in Medicare.

Enrollment & timing

KFF: 4.3 Million Medicare Beneficiaries Will Lose Their Plan at Year-End 2026, Including 1.2 Million on Standalone Drug Plans

A new KFF analysis finds that year-end plan terminations extend well beyond Medicare Advantage, catching 1.2 million people with standalone Part D drug plans who must also find new coverage before December 7.

October 28, 2026

Enrollment & timing

Plans Are Ending for 2027. Here Is What Medicare Advantage Members Need to Know Before December 7.

Beneficiaries whose plans will not return in 2027 have more time than the standard open enrollment deadline to find new coverage, but the window to ensure January 1 coverage closes at year-end.

October 24, 2026

Enrollment & timing

65 Medicare Advantage Plans for 2027 Have Hard Membership Caps That Could Close Before December 7

For the first time, CMS is letting Medicare Advantage plans set legally binding enrollment limits. Once a capped plan fills up mid-open enrollment, it closes to new applicants, and Medicare Plan Finder currently shows no warning.

October 22, 2026

Enrollment & timing

Medigap Access Barriers May Leave Many Medicare Advantage Enrollees With Fewer Real Choices During Open Enrollment

As the Medicare open enrollment period opened October 15, the Medicare Rights Center warned that most Medicare Advantage enrollees face health-based barriers to buying Medigap coverage, which could make switching to Traditional Medicare financially impractical even for those who want out.

October 16, 2026

Enrollment & timing

KFF: 120,000 People Waiting for Medicare Disability Coverage Used Medicaid as a Bridge. Work Requirements Starting January 2027 Could End That.

A new KFF analysis finds that more than 120,000 people who transition to Medicare through disability benefits each year had relied on Medicaid expansion while waiting out Medicare's two-year waiting period. A 2025 federal law applies work requirements to Medicaid expansion starting January 2027.

October 16, 2026

Enrollment & timing

Medicare Open Enrollment Opens as More Than 3 Million Advantage Members Face Mandatory Plan Changes

The 2027 Annual Enrollment Period began October 15, the third consecutive year in which millions of Medicare Advantage enrollees must find new coverage because their existing plans are not continuing.

October 15, 2026