Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison is warning that 15 counties will have no Medicare Advantage plans at all in 2027, and that about one-third of the state’s 1.2 million Medicare members will lose the plan they have now. Anyone whose plan is ending has until Dec. 7 to choose new coverage. Ellison issued the alert Nov. 2.
Only a small fraction of affected members will be moved automatically to another plan, the alert says, and that plan may not fit their doctors or drugs. Minnesota Aging Pathways, the state’s Medicare help service, estimates that nearly 400,000 Minnesotans are affected.
The 15 counties with no Medicare Advantage plans
The attorney general’s alert names the counties: Aitkin, Carlton, Chippewa, Cook, Goodhue, Koochiching, Lake, McLeod, Meeker, Mille Lacs, Pine, Rice, Sibley, Stevens and Yellow Medicine. Medicare Cost plans and Original Medicare remain available in all of them.
Three more counties are in a tougher spot. Crow Wing, Lake of the Woods and Wadena will have neither Medicare Advantage nor Medicare Cost plans, so Original Medicare is the only option there. People in those three counties who want prescription coverage must pick a stand-alone Part D drug plan, because without one they will have no drug coverage.
What people in those counties have to decide
A member whose plan is ending in one of these counties has to decide between three paths before the window closes: switch to Original Medicare and add a drug plan, move to a Medicare Cost plan where one is sold, or, in a county that still has other Advantage plans, pick a different Advantage plan. The alert lists those same choices, with Medigap as an option for people who go back to Original Medicare.
The deadline is firm. Medicare.gov says the plan must receive an enrollment request by Dec. 7, and that changes made in Open Enrollment take effect Jan. 1. During that window people can join, drop or switch Medicare Advantage plans, add or drop drug coverage, or move from an Advantage plan back to Original Medicare.
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Ellison urged people to review their options well before Dec. 7. Maureen Schneider, chair of the Minnesota Board on Aging, said in the alert: “People need to act to make sure they have coverage for 2027.” The alert does not name the specific plans being discontinued, so members should look to the notice their plan sent.
The alert explains the three kinds of coverage in plain terms. Original Medicare, Parts A and B, covers hospital and outpatient care. Drug coverage needs a separate Part D plan, and optional supplemental coverage is sold on top.
Medicare Advantage plans are private, Medicare-approved plans that bundle that coverage with extras. They usually offer more coverage but less freedom in choosing providers. Medicare Cost plans, sold only in some rural counties, give the most coverage in network, and care outside the network is still paid under Parts A and B.
Medigap policies help pay copayments, coinsurance and deductibles. The attorney general says guaranteed issue rights during this period let eligible people buy a Medigap policy without medical underwriting, meaning the insurer cannot turn them down over health.
Medigap timing for people leaving Advantage
Medicare.gov spells out the Medigap clock for people whose plan is ending or no longer covers their area. They can apply starting 60 days before the Advantage coverage ends, or up to 63 days after it ends, and the Medigap policy cannot start until the Advantage coverage does. Those rights apply only if the person goes to Original Medicare, not to another Advantage plan.
The Medigap page also advises keeping every letter, notice and claim denial from the old plan, in case proof of the end date is needed. In some cases the rights last an extra 12 months, and the state insurance department can say whether that applies. Anyone who does nothing in a county with no Advantage plan is placed in Original Medicare automatically, with no drug coverage. Medicare.gov adds that people who move from an Advantage plan to Original Medicare may need a separate drug plan, and that there are limits on when Medigap can be added.
Where to get help before Dec. 7
The alert lays out five steps from Minnesota Aging Pathways. Use the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov, entering prescriptions and the pharmacy. Choose plans to explore. Check each plan’s network, or call the plan, to confirm doctors participate. Enroll by phone or through the Plan Finder. Then call for help.
Free help is available at 1-800-MEDICARE, open 24 hours a day, and at Minnesota Aging Pathways, formerly the Senior LinkAge Line, at 800-333-2433 from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays. Call volume is very high, so waits can be long. Ellison supports more funding for the Aging Pathways call center to cut those waits.
The alert tells members to weigh doctors, pharmacy, drug coverage, premium changes, other out-of-pocket costs and travel. With a month to go before the deadline, the open question for anyone in those counties is whether their doctors and drugs survive the switch.
Losing a Minnesota Medicare Advantage plan?
Missing Dec. 7 in a county with no Advantage plan can leave a member in Original Medicare with no drug coverage and no Medigap safety net. Picking a replacement plan without checking doctors and drugs can cost just as much, and the notices rarely show the full price.
The 2027 Medicare Open Enrollment Decision Kit is a 55-page set built for members whose plan is leaving. It includes a cost calculator spreadsheet that compares plans on cost, drugs and doctors, plus a provider call script and Medigap guaranteed-issue call script, so the keep, switch or wait choice has a written reason behind it.
Get the plan-comparison calculator and call scripts for Minnesota’s Medicare Advantage exits →
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
