3.16 Million MA Members Are Losing Their Plan: The Agent's Guide to Plan Exits and GI Medigap
Week one of AEP is done, and the story isn't a new benefit or a shiny plan. It's plans going away. If you work Medicare, the biggest guaranteed issue Medigap window in years is sitting in your clients' mailboxes right now.
The numbers
Per Medicare Market Insights, roughly 3.16 million individual MA enrollees, about 11%, are in plans that are terminating or cutting their service area for 2027. That's up from about 2.87 million last year.
Per KFF, 193 counties will have no MA-PD available for general enrollment in 2027, up from 123.
What it looks like on the ground
Iowa. Per the Iowa Insurance Division, more than 87,000 Iowans got notices that their 2027 plan is ending or leaving their county. Wellmark and Medica are canceling their MA PPOs, and no 2027 Iowa MA plan has Mayo Clinic in network. The state lists Feb 28, 2027 as the deadline to make changes under the Special Enrollment Period for canceled plans.
Hawaii. As reported by Hawaii News Now, HMSA is disenrolling 16,000 Akamai Advantage Complete Plus members. The replacement HMO doesn't include The Queen's Health System.
Minnesota. Per MPR News, no insurer offers an MA plan in Crow Wing County for 2027, and Humana is leaving individual MA in the state (fewer than 10,000 members) while keeping group plans.
Why this is a Medigap conversation
When an MA plan terminates or leaves a client's service area, that generally triggers the federal guaranteed issue right to buy certain Medigap plans without health questions. That matters because, per KFF, 74% of MA enrollees have a condition that could get them denied Medigap outside a GI window. For a lot of your clients, this is the one clean shot they get.
In Iowa, that's the whole ballgame. It's an underwritten state, and the clients who want Mayo are your first calls. In Hawaii, a client who wants to keep their Queen's doctors has a clean Medigap plus Part D option. In Crow Wing County, there's no MA to move to, so Medigap is the only step up from Original Medicare.
The playbook
Read the letter first. Sit down with the client and the termination or service area notice before you compare anything. Confirm it's a true termination or service area reduction, not a network change.
Note the dates. Write down the plan end date and any SEP deadline (like Iowa's Feb 28, 2027). GI rights have windows, and you want to be well inside them.
Run both paths. Show the replacement MA options and Medigap plus a standalone Part D plan side by side. Let the client's doctors, budget and health drive it.
Don't let them drift. A client who does nothing can end up somewhere they didn't choose. Book the follow-up before you hang up.
Start with the hardest-hit counties. No MA option, a big system leaving, or a carrier exiting: call those clients this week.
For the deeper underwriting side, see our Medicare Supplement underwriting field guide, and use the AEP 2027 playbook to organize the season. We also broke down which carriers are exiting for 2027.
Get the free Medicare Bible
Plan exits test your fundamentals: GI rights, enrollment periods, Medigap versus MA. Brock puts out tons of resources like these, and the Medicare Bible is the one to keep open on your desk this AEP. Download the free Medicare Bible.
FAQ
How many MA members are losing their plan for 2027?
Per Medicare Market Insights, roughly 3.16 million individual MA enrollees (about 11%) are in terminated or service-area-reduced plans for 2027, up from about 2.87 million last year.
Does an MA plan termination give my client guaranteed issue Medigap rights?
Generally, yes. A plan termination or service area exit generally triggers the federal Medigap GI right. Confirm the notice and the timing before you promise no health questions.
How many counties have no MA-PD plan in 2027?
Per KFF, 193 counties have no MA-PD for general enrollment in 2027, up from 123.
What's the SEP deadline for canceled Iowa MA plans?
The Iowa Insurance Division lists Feb 28, 2027.
