Florida loses 51 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027, the most of any state, as open enrollment nears

Florida seniors heading into Medicare's annual open enrollment will find fewer private plans on the shelf next year. The state will have 560 Medicare Advantage plans available for 2027, down from 611 this year, according to state-by-state fact sheets released by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services in late September. That 51-plan drop is the largest numerical decline of any state, according to an analysis of the federal data by the trade publication Becker's Payer Issues.

The change matters more in Florida than almost anywhere else. CMS counts 5,334,437 people enrolled in Medicare in the state, and Florida has one of the highest rates of Medicare Advantage participation in the country. Industry analyses put the share of Florida beneficiaries in Medicare Advantage at roughly 57% to 60%. Open enrollment runs from Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, 2026, with any changes taking effect Jan. 1, 2027.

What the federal numbers show for Florida

Medicare Advantage plans are private alternatives to traditional Medicare, sold by insurers that receive a monthly payment from the federal government for each member. Many bundle prescription drug coverage and extras such as dental, vision and hearing benefits.

According to the CMS fact sheet for Florida, the lowest monthly premium for a Medicare Advantage plan in the state remains $0. The average monthly Medicare Advantage premium in Florida rises slightly, from $1.83 in 2026 to $2.13 in 2027, which remains far below the national average.

The plan count is not simply a story of cuts. A review of the 2027 plan list by the comparison site MyMedicarePlans.org found 73 Florida plans that are new for 2027, meaning the net decline masks a larger number of plans that will not return. By that site's count, roughly 124 of this year's plans are not coming back. The same analysis counted 130 dual eligible special needs plans in Florida for 2027, which serve people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid. Those third-party tallies have not been published by CMS in that form.

The national picture

Nationally, CMS projects the weighted average monthly Medicare Advantage premium will fall 16.5%, from $14.37 in 2026 to $12.00 in 2027. For Medicare Advantage plans that include drug coverage, the average monthly Part D portion of the premium is projected to drop from $11.32 to $7. Premiums for stand-alone Part D drug plans, used mostly by people in traditional Medicare, are projected to rise by less than $1, from an average of $35.09 to $36.

The total number of Medicare Advantage plans nationwide is essentially flat, sliding from 5,553 to 5,532, according to reporting by Healthcare Dive on the CMS data. Plans are expecting about 34 million Medicare Advantage enrollees in 2027, roughly 47% of all people on Medicare, according to Becker's.

But the stable national count hides sharp regional shifts. Plan choice will fall in 29 of the 51 jurisdictions where individual Medicare Advantage plans are sold, Becker's reported. After Florida, the largest numerical declines are in Ohio, which drops from 212 plans to 180, and Illinois, which falls from 157 to 136. A separate analysis by KFF found the average Medicare beneficiary will have 28 Medicare Advantage plans with drug coverage to choose from in 2027, down from 32 this year and well below the peak of 36 in 2024.

Insurers pull back

The contraction reflects a strategy shift by the biggest insurers, which have spent the past two years trying to repair profit margins after medical costs ran higher than expected. According to Becker's, Centene is exiting 344 counties for 2027, UnitedHealthcare 140, Aetna 123, Humana 57 and Elevance 56.

Humana, one of Florida's largest Medicare Advantage carriers, told analysts on its July 29 earnings call that targeted plan exits for 2027 would affect about 600,000 members nationally. The company has not published a full list of affected plans or counties, according to multiple reports, and it has said it expects to move many of those members into other Humana plans. Reports have said Humana recaptured just over 40% of members affected by its exits the previous year.

Some consumer sites have reported that UnitedHealthcare is cutting plans in major Florida counties, including Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach. The Florida Press could not confirm a county-by-county list from the company or from CMS.

What it means for Florida beneficiaries

Insurers were required to mail each member an Annual Notice of Change by Sept. 30. That document lists 2027 changes to premiums, copays, deductibles, covered drugs and provider networks. Members whose plan is ending altogether should receive a separate non-renewal letter. Under Medicare rules, people whose plans are discontinued get a special enrollment period to pick new coverage and certain guaranteed rights to buy a Medicare supplement policy.

Even members whose plans continue may see changes to the extras that have made Medicare Advantage popular in Florida, such as grocery allowances, dental maximums and gym benefits. Industry analysts have noted that a lower average premium does not mean a given plan's costs will fall, since copays, networks and drug formularies can change from year to year.

On the drug side, the out-of-pocket cap on covered Part D drug costs created by the Inflation Reduction Act rises to $2,400 for 2027, according to industry summaries of the CMS parameters.

Where to get help

Florida's SHINE program, short for Serving Health Insurance Needs of Elders, offers free, unbiased Medicare counseling through the Florida Department of Elder Affairs. Volunteers can help compare plans, check whether doctors and prescriptions are covered, and sort out what to do if a plan is ending. SHINE can be reached through the Elder Helpline at 1-800-963-5337. The federal Medicare Plan Finder at Medicare.gov also lists every plan available by ZIP code.

What's next

Open enrollment begins Oct. 15 and closes Dec. 7, 2026. During that window, people with Medicare can switch Medicare Advantage plans, move from Medicare Advantage to traditional Medicare, or change Part D drug plans. Coverage chosen during open enrollment starts Jan. 1, 2027.

A second window, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period, runs from Jan. 1 to March 31, 2027. It allows people already in a Medicare Advantage plan to make one switch to another Medicare Advantage plan or back to traditional Medicare.

Insurers are expected to begin marketing their 2027 plans to Florida seniors in the coming days. With more than 5.3 million Medicare enrollees and one of the heaviest concentrations of Medicare Advantage members in the country, Florida is likely to be the largest testing ground for how beneficiaries respond to a shrinking menu of plans.