In short
- Annual Enrollment runs October 15 to December 7, 2026. 2027 plans have been on Medicare.gov since October 1, and 2027 Star Ratings post on or around October 8.
- Your plan's Annual Notice of Change, sent by September 30, lists what changes in January: premiums, copays, drug coverage, networks and service area.
- If your Medicare Advantage plan isn't renewed and you don't pick another, you'll be put in Original Medicare, without drug coverage unless you add a Part D plan.
- Annual Enrollment doesn't apply to Medicare Supplements, but supplement owners should still review their Part D plan.
- Nebraska has 48 Medicare Advantage plans and 9 standalone Part D plans for 2027, down from 50 and 11.
Every fall, Medicare plans change, and the letters explaining those changes show up right alongside a pile of ads. The Annual Enrollment Period is your yearly chance to make sure your plan still fits. Here's what you can change, what to check, what's different for 2027 in Nebraska, and how I review my own clients.
What can you change during Annual Enrollment?
From October 15 to December 7, 2026, you can change your Medicare Advantage or Part D coverage for 2027. Changes start January 1, 2027.
| Change | Allowed October 15 to December 7? |
|---|---|
| Join, switch or drop a Medicare Advantage plan | Yes |
| Switch from Original Medicare to Medicare Advantage | Yes |
| Drop Medicare Advantage and go back to Original Medicare | Yes |
| Join, switch or drop a standalone Part D plan | Yes |
| Switch Medigap (Medicare Supplement) plans | Not part of this window |
That last row trips people up. A Medicare Supplement isn't part of Annual Enrollment. In Nebraska you can apply to change supplements at any time of year, but the company can usually ask health questions. See my Medicare Supplement page for those rules.
What should you look for in your Annual Notice of Change?
Your Annual Notice of Change is the most useful piece of Medicare mail you'll get all year. Your Medicare Advantage or Part D plan sends it by September 30, and it lists everything changing on January 1. Your Evidence of Coverage, with full plan details, comes by October 15.
Here's what I look for, in order:
| Item | What to check |
|---|---|
| Each medication | Is it still covered? Did its tier change? Any new prior authorization or step therapy? |
| Drug deductible | The 2027 maximum is $700. Which tiers does it apply to? |
| Pharmacy | Is your pharmacy still in network, and still preferred? |
| Doctors and hospitals | Is every doctor, specialist and hospital you use still in network for 2027? |
| Copays | Primary care, specialists, urgent care, ER, imaging, outpatient surgery |
| Hospital stay | The cost per day, and for how many days |
| Out-of-pocket limit | Did your yearly maximum go up? |
| Premium | Did it change? Remember the Part B premium is separate. |
| Service area | Is the plan still offered in your county? |
| Extras | Dental, vision and hearing benefits, and whether they changed |
If a plan stays the same on paper but your health or medications changed this year, that counts as a change too. Bring both to the review.
What's different about 2027 for Nebraskans?
More than usual. A few changes worth knowing before you sit down:
- Fewer plans. CMS counts 48 Medicare Advantage plans in Nebraska for 2027, down from 50, and 9 standalone Part D plans, down from 11.
- Companies redrawing their maps. Medica's Medicare Advantage plans leave Lancaster, Douglas, Sarpy and five other eastern counties. UnitedHealthcare's AARP plans with drug coverage shrink to 5 counties. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska leaves 15 counties and renames its lineup, Humana leaves 6 panhandle counties, and Devoted Health expands to 42 counties. The county-by-county table is on my Medicare Advantage page.
- Part D costs shift. The 2027 Part D deductible can be up to $700 and the cap on covered drug costs is $2,400. A CMS program that limited standalone drug plan premium increases ended after 2026, and SilverScript Choice and HealthSpring Extra Rx aren't offered in Nebraska for 2027. Details on my Part D page.
- New Star Ratings. 2027 Star Ratings post on Medicare.gov on or around October 8, 2026. Here's how to read them.
- New rules for agents. Starting October 1, 2026, the 48-hour wait between signing a Scope of Appointment and meeting with an agent is gone, so you can sign it and meet the same day. On sales calls, an agent who doesn't offer every plan in your area has to say so before discussing benefits.
For a fuller rundown, see 2027 Annual Enrollment changes for Nebraskans. Plan availability, premiums, networks and benefits vary by county and change every year, which is exactly why the review matters.
What if your plan is leaving or ending?
Choose a new plan by December 7, 2026, so it starts January 1 with no gap. Your plan has to send you a notice if it won't be offered in your area for 2027.
You also get a Special Enrollment Period from December 8 through the last day of February to pick another plan. If you do nothing and your Medicare Advantage plan ends, you'll be enrolled in Original Medicare, without drug coverage unless you join a Part D plan.
There's one opportunity hidden in this. When your Medicare Advantage plan leaves your area, you get a guaranteed issue right to buy certain Medigap policies without health questions. You can apply as early as 60 days before your coverage ends, and no later than 63 days after. For someone who has wanted a supplement but worried about Nebraska's underwriting, this can be the opening.
How do I review my clients every fall?
Plans for the next year come out October 1, and Annual Enrollment opens October 15. Those two weeks are when I sort out who needs a conversation first. I don't wait for people to book appointments. I call them.
When we talk, I ask what's changed. New doctors? New medications? Changes in dose? Then I run the 2027 plans with that information. Every client gets one of three answers:
| What I find | What we do |
|---|---|
| Your plan still fits | You stay, and I tell you why |
| A different plan with the same company fits better | We switch plans, and you keep the same company |
| A different company fits better | We switch companies, and I help you through the change |
Switching companies is the hard part for a lot of people. You may have called the same phone number for years and know exactly which button to push. A new company means a new ID card, a new number, maybe a new pharmacy, and a new phone tree. That's a real change, and I don't ask anyone to make it unless the numbers say it's worth it. When it is, I help with the calls.
Why bother every year? Because things get missed. I once sat down with a client who'd been on Medicare for years without knowing her plan covered care she needed. A real review catches that.
What should you bring to your review?
Bring these, whether you're meeting with me, Nebraska SHIP or working on Medicare.gov yourself:
- Your Medicare card and your current plan ID card.
- Your Annual Notice of Change.
- Every medication: name, dose and how often you take it.
- Your pharmacy, and whether you use mail order.
- Every doctor and specialist, and the hospitals you'd want.
- Any big changes: a new diagnosis, a planned surgery, a move, or a change in income.
A printable version is on my Medicare review checklist.
Should you switch if your plan still works?
Not automatically. A plan that still covers your doctors and medications at a cost you can live with is often the right place to stay. Switching has costs that don't show up on a comparison chart, like a new formulary, new prior authorization rules and a new network to learn.
Switch when the numbers or the network clearly favor it: your main medication moved to a higher tier, a doctor you need left the network, or the total yearly cost for your situation is meaningfully lower elsewhere. And if a 5-star plan is offered in your area, you can switch into it once between December 8 and November 30 of the following year.
What if you miss December 7?
You still have some options:
- January 1 to March 31, 2027: if you're in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can make one change, to another Medicare Advantage plan or back to Original Medicare with a Part D plan. See Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment.
- Special Enrollment Periods: moving, losing other coverage, getting Extra Help or Medicaid, or your plan leaving your area can open a window. See Special Enrollment Periods.
- Medigap: you can apply any time of year, with underwriting in most cases.
My page on how to switch Medicare plans walks through each path.
Where can you get help with your fall review?
Medicare.gov's Plan Finder shows every 2027 plan in your county, and 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (TTY 1-877-486-2048). Nebraska SHIP (formerly SHIIP) offers unbiased counseling at 1-800-234-7119, and in Lincoln, Aging Partners has certified SHIP counselors for people 60 and older. I wrote more about how I spend those first two weeks in the 14 days before open enrollment.
If you'd like me to run your 2027 options, talk to me. My help costs you nothing, and if you're in a good spot, I'll tell you so.
Frequently asked questions
The Annual Enrollment Period, often called open enrollment, runs October 15 to December 7, 2026. Any change you make takes effect January 1, 2027. You can compare 2027 plans on Medicare.gov now, since plan information went live October 1. If you're in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one more chance to change from January 1 to March 31, 2027.
No. If your plan is offered again in 2027, you stay in it automatically. But staying put isn't the same as nothing changing. Your premium, copays, drug list, pharmacies and doctor network can all change on January 1. Read your Annual Notice of Change and check your medications and doctors for 2027 before December 7, then decide whether staying is still the right call.
Annual Enrollment doesn't give you any new right to change Medigap plans. In Nebraska, you can apply to switch supplements at any time of year, but outside your Medigap Open Enrollment Period or a guaranteed issue situation, the company can ask health questions. What you can change in the fall is your Part D drug plan, or you can move between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage.
It's a notice your Medicare Advantage or Part D plan sends each fall, printed or electronic, by September 30. It lists every change taking effect in January, including costs, coverage, provider networks and service area. Your plan also sends its Evidence of Coverage, or a notice about it, by October 15. If you didn't get these documents in early fall, call your plan.
Your plan has to notify you. Pick a new plan by December 7 so it starts January 1. You also get a Special Enrollment Period from December 8 through the last day of February. If you don't choose another plan, you'll be enrolled in Original Medicare, and you'd need to add a Part D plan for drug coverage. Leaving this way also gives you a guaranteed right to buy certain Medigap policies.
Yes, while the window is open. You can make another change any time before December 7, and the plan you're enrolled in when the window closes is the one that starts January 1. After December 7, people in a Medicare Advantage plan can make one more change from January 1 to March 31. Otherwise you'd generally need a Special Enrollment Period to change again during 2027.
Sources
- Medicare.gov: Medicare & You 2027 (opens in a new tab)
- Medicare.gov: Understanding Medicare Advantage and Medicare drug plan enrollment periods (opens in a new tab)
- Medicare.gov: Special Enrollment Periods (opens in a new tab)
- CMS: Medicare Open Enrollment state fact sheets, 2027 (Nebraska) (opens in a new tab)
- CMS: Contract Year 2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D final rule fact sheet (opens in a new tab)
- eCFR: 42 CFR 422.2264, Scope of Appointment (opens in a new tab)
- Medicare.gov: Choosing a Medigap Policy (CMS Product No. 02110, March 2026) (opens in a new tab)
We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to those plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options. 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. TTY users can call 1-877-486-2048.
