HealthPartners is dropping two of its Journey PPO Medicare Advantage plans in every Minnesota county for 2027. Journey Steady (PPO) and Journey Stride (PPO) both end statewide, according to the insurer’s own 2027 member page, and members of the affected plans are due an important notice and a phone message during October 2026. The insurer has not published how many members are on the two plans.
Inside the decision kit: The 2027 Medicare Open Enrollment Decision Kit pairs a cost calculator spreadsheet that compares plans on cost, drugs and doctors with a prescription-by-plan comparison.
Two Journey plans end everywhere, two more end in seven counties
The two statewide endings are only part of the list. HealthPartners’ 2027 Medicare page, last updated October 1, 2026, also says the Journey Pace and Journey Smart plans end in Kandiyohi, McLeod, Meeker, Pope, Redwood, Renville and Swift counties. That makes four Journey PPO plans with some form of ending, and only Steady and Stride end in every county.
HealthPartners is not leaving Medicare Advantage. The page says Pace and Smart continue in the metro counties of Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott and Washington, and in the central counties of Benton, Chisago, Isanti, Morrison, Sherburne, Stearns, Todd and Wright. Its Wisconsin Birch and Cedar plans also continue. A member of Steady or Stride in one of those 15 Minnesota counties therefore has a HealthPartners plan to look at, while a member elsewhere in the state does not find Pace or Smart on the list of continuing counties.
A notice in October, then a shop-early recommendation
Per the insurer, affected members “will receive an important notice and phone message in October 2026,” and new plans can be enrolled in starting October 15, 2026. HealthPartners adds a recommendation in its own words: “We recommend you shop and enroll in a Medicare Advantage plan early to get the plan you prefer.” Questions go to 844-363-8979 (TTY 711).
The page does not say what happens to a member who does nothing. The federal rule that fills that gap sits on Medicare.gov, which says a person whose plan is not renewed is enrolled in Original Medicare if no other Medicare Advantage plan is joined before the current one ends.
December 7 is the date for plans that are not ending
The December 7 deadline appears on the HealthPartners page with a condition attached: “If your current Medicare plan is not ending, Medicare’s Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) concludes Dec. 7, 2026.” The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services confirms the October 15 through December 7 window in its 2027 plan announcement.
For members whose plans do end, the insurer points to Special Enrollment Periods “that extend into early 2027.” Medicare.gov’s special enrollment period page gives the window for a plan contract that is not renewed as December 8 through the last day of February of the following year, during which a member can switch to another Medicare Advantage plan or a drug plan.
Medicare Supplement plans stay open to everyone who applies
HealthPartners lists a second route. Its Medicare Supplement plans, available in all Minnesota counties, “remain open to all applications” with “no capacity limits,” the page says. A Supplement plan pairs with Original Medicare rather than replacing it, so choosing that path means leaving Medicare Advantage altogether.
A separate Minnesota network change takes effect the same day
Another 2027 change hits a different group of Minnesota members. M Health Fairview says it “will no longer schedule patients with UHC Medicare Advantage plans beginning Jan. 1, 2027.” Its page tells those patients to review options during open enrollment and names Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, HealthPartners, Medica or Original Medicare as alternatives where Fairview providers are wanted. It also lists free guidance from Chapter advisors at (855) 797-3811 and Minnesota Aging Pathways at 1-800-333-2433.
The two changes are unrelated: one is an insurer withdrawing plans, the other a health system dropping an insurer’s Advantage plans. Both force a December decision for the members involved.
A national plan count that barely moved
CMS’s announcement counts about 5,532 Medicare Advantage plans nationally for 2027, down slightly from 5,553 in 2026, and says more than 99 percent of beneficiaries will have access to at least one. CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz is quoted in the release: “CMS is fighting to keep high-quality care options affordable and accessible.” A flat national count says little about a member whose own plan is gone, which is the position of anyone on Journey Steady or Journey Stride.
Replacing a Journey PPO means rechecking doctors, drugs and two clocks
A replacement plan has to be checked against the same things the old plan covered. The Fairview notice shows why a doctor or hospital network is not a footnote: a health system’s decision about which Advantage plans it schedules can change from one plan year to the next, and the HealthPartners page makes the point from the insurer’s side by noting that continuing plans are limited to the 15 counties it lists. Which plan fits depends on the member’s county, drug list and providers.
Two calendars also run at once. The annual window closes December 7 for plans that are not ending, and the special enrollment period for a plan contract that is not renewed opens December 8 and runs through the last day of February. A member who is unsure which clock applies has to read the October notice against both dates before moving.
The free official route is Medicare’s Plan Finder at medicare.gov and 1-800-MEDICARE, which CMS says is open around the clock, plus HealthPartners at 844-363-8979 and Minnesota Aging Pathways at 1-800-333-2433. Choosing a plan costs nothing and needs no paid help.
Picking a 2027 plan after Journey Steady or Journey Stride
The HealthPartners notice arrives in October and leaves the comparison work to the member: which replacement plan covers current doctors, which handles the medicine list, and whether a Supplement plan is the better route. The unfinished job is turning the plan list for a county into one decision before the enrollment clocks run out.
The 2027 Medicare Open Enrollment Decision Kit includes a provider call script, the Open Enrollment calendar and a section on Medigap guaranteed-issue rights when a Medicare Advantage plan leaves, with a call script.
This piece was drafted with AI assistance; the figures were checked against HealthPartners’ 2027 Medicare page, CMS, Medicare.gov and M Health Fairview.
