Plan-ending letter? Here are your three paths.

Published October 23, 2026 · By Erik Roti, Options.Health

As of October 23, 2026. Medicare Advantage (MA) availability is shifting across Minnesota for 2027, and details can still change. Check your own plan notice and Medicare Plan Finder before you decide.

The Minnesota Board on Aging estimates that roughly 392,000 of the state’s 1.2 million Medicare enrollees will lose their current MA plan for 2027. Fifteen counties will have no MA plan options at all, and in three of them — Crow Wing, Lake of the Woods, and Wadena — there are no MA or Medicare Cost plans either, leaving Original Medicare as the only choice. Several of the state’s largest carriers cite rising medical and drug costs, and one national carrier is leaving the individual MA market in Minnesota entirely.

If you’re holding a notice that says your plan won’t be offered in 2027, here is how to think it through.

First, figure out which kind of letter you got

Two situations look alike but aren’t. In one, your plan is being discontinued but the same carrier is launching a replacement, so you may be offered a new plan to move into. In the other, your carrier is leaving your county altogether. Plan availability is decided by insurers county by county — your doctor, clinic, or hospital didn’t drop you. Either way, a replacement plan can differ from your old one in premium, network, drug list, and pharmacy costs, so it’s worth comparing it instead of letting it roll over.

The dates that actually matter

Annual enrollment runs October 15 through December 7, and choices made in that window start January 1, 2027. Your current plan ends December 31. If your plan is leaving your area, you also get a special enrollment period from December 8 through the end of February 2027, but a plan chosen after December 31 generally starts the first of the following month. That’s a stretch where you could be on Original Medicare with no drug coverage and no supplement. If you do nothing, that’s where you land on January 1 — and going 63 days or more without creditable drug coverage can add a permanent late-enrollment penalty to a future Part D premium. (If you receive Extra Help, Medicare may assign you a standalone drug plan, but don’t count on that without checking.)

Path 1: Switch to another Medicare Advantage plan

This is the closest thing to what you have now: one plan bundling hospital, medical, and usually drug coverage, often with a low or $0 premium. It works well if your doctors and hospital are in the new plan’s network and your prescriptions are on its drug list. The tradeoffs are fewer plans to choose from in many counties, networks that can change year to year, and an annual out-of-pocket maximum instead of the open-ended 20% you’d face under Original Medicare alone. Before you pick, confirm your specific doctors, your specific prescriptions and pharmacy, and the plan’s out-of-pocket maximum — not just the premium.

Path 2: Original Medicare plus a Medigap plan plus Part D

This route gives you the freedom to see any doctor who accepts Medicare, with a supplement picking up most of what Original Medicare leaves behind, plus a standalone drug plan. The cost picture is different: monthly premiums are typically higher than an MA plan, in exchange for much more predictable costs when you actually use care. One Crow Wing County resident told a local paper her monthly cost could jump from about $62 to about $600 after losing MA — an individual case, but a reminder to price the whole package before you commit.

Minnesota’s Medigap market works differently from most states. Instead of lettered Plans A through N, Minnesota uses its own standardized Basic plan (with optional riders) and Extended Basic plan, and pricing is based largely on factors like where you live and tobacco use rather than age.

The key to this path is timing. When your MA plan ends because it’s leaving your area, you generally have a guaranteed-issue right to buy a Medigap policy without health questions. Medicare’s rule is that you can apply as early as 60 days before your MA coverage ends and no later than 63 days after, and it only applies if you switch to Original Medicare rather than joining another MA plan. Medigap coverage can’t start until your MA coverage ends. Miss the window and the carrier can ask health questions and decline you or charge more. Which Minnesota plans a carrier must sell you under that right can vary, and some carriers describe it as limited to their Basic plan, so ask each one before you assume you can get Extended Basic. Minnesota has also created a separate guaranteed-issue opportunity for some residents ages 65 to 70, with rate surcharges, so ask about it if your 63 days have passed.

Path 3: Original Medicare plus Part D, without a Medigap plan

This is the lowest-premium way to leave MA, and for some healthy people it’s a reasonable choice. The risk is that Original Medicare has no out-of-pocket maximum — you generally pay 20% of covered outpatient costs, and hospital stays carry the deductibles and daily coinsurance we covered in our Medicare Part A explainer. The larger catch is that if you skip Medigap now and want it later, you may face medical underwriting after your guaranteed-issue window closes. You still need a Part D plan on this path to avoid the late-enrollment penalty.

A short checklist for this week

Find the notice and note your carrier and plan name. List your doctors, your hospital, your prescriptions, and your pharmacy. Look up what’s available in your county on Medicare Plan Finder. Pick your path before December 7. If you’re going the Medigap route, apply inside your guaranteed-issue window and don’t enroll in another MA plan first. Free, unbiased counseling is also available through Minnesota’s Senior LinkAge Line, and a licensed broker can compare all three paths with your actual doctors and prescriptions.