Medicare Advantage 2027 Retrenchment Examined
In a new analysis, actuarial and consulting firm Wakely finds that more than 6.3 million Medicare Advantage (MA) members (almost 19%) are affected by plan terminations or crosswalks for 2027. Wakely says approximately 3 million members (about 9%) are enrolled in plans that will close without an automatic transition to another plan. Others had their plan ended, but moved to another plan within the sponsor. In some cases, those plans fit the members’ needs. In other cases, they may not.
Wakely also reported on the major growth in Chronic Care Special Needs Plans (C-SNPs). They increased 34% from 2026 to 2027, following 56% growth in 2026. These are disease specific plans that do not have all of the strict compliance rules that Dual Eligible SNPs (D-SNPs) have. The government wants to force the C-SNPs to obey many of the same rules as D-SNPs.
Wakely also says HMO offerings increased by 63 plans to reach 2,531 plans (46%) in 2027. Local PPO offerings declined by 83 plans (now 32%), while HMO-POS offerings remained essentially flat (now at 21%).
Lastly, Wakely says about two-thirds of 2027 plan offerings have no member premium. General enrollment Part D deductibles increased from $363 to $493, while average Part C maximum out-of-pocket limits increased from $5,330 to $5,874.
#medicareadvantage #enrollment
https://www.wakely.com/blog/medicare-advantage-2027-beyond-the-plan-count/
Broker Groups Sue Government Over Freeze
The National Association of Benefits and Insurance Professionals sued the Department of Health and Human Services as well as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) over a rule freezing new broker enrollment on HealthCare.gov for 2027, the Exchange program at the federal level.
The group says the agencies lack the authority to impose the freeze and violated the Administrative Procedure Act by skipping public comment.
#exchanges #fwa #brokers
https://www.modernhealthcare.com/insurance/mh-cms-2027-aca-exchanges-marketers-lawsuit/
Dems Want To Roll Back Healthcare Changes
House Democrats are preparing an ambitious 100-days agenda if they return to power and changes include rolling back healthcare reforms made by the Trump administration and a GOP Congress. They want to reinstate the Exchange enhanced premium subsidies and reversing Medicaid cuts.
#midterms2026 #healthcare #congress
New Health Affairs Blog Promotes CHOICE
A new Health Affairs Forefront blog says the Custom Health Option and Individual Care Expense (CHOICE), formerly known as Individual Health Care Reimbursement Accounts (ICHRAs) says the product could be very important in the new era of the gig economy with part-time workers as well as to expand employer coverage. The authors argue that coverage should gradually be decoupled from employment and moved to a system of individual choice and portability. They say a new path should include a multi-employer contribution model that follows part-time and gig workers across jobs and incentives that makes insurance coverage both attractive and feasible for small employers.
#ichra #choice #coverage #healthcare
— Marc S. Ryan
