Change is coming

Be on the lookout for major modifications in 2026 Medicare Plans.

While I touched on some of the changes coming to Medicare Advantage plans in my recent article published in 50Plus Magazine, I wanted to share a little more with you here.

Medicare Annual Enrollment officially begins October 15^th. If you have Medicare coverage, you should have already received an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) to notify you what your plan will and will not include in 2026. This year most plans are making big changes, with increasing premiums, co-payments and squeezing down and eliminating benefits.

There are still some solid plans on the market, in 2026, don’t be afraid to switch.

Many of benefits you have relied on this year, could be gone come 2026. Health plans explain these modifications on narrow government reimbursements, and ever-rising health care costs.

Insurance Plans are exiting regions and cutting service territories. Two of the nation’s largest health plans have completely pulled out of Vermont. Beneficiaries in that state will need to find another private option or be content with Original Medicare and Plan D.

Read your 2026 plan materials and ANOC carefully. Check for increases in co-payments and higher out-of-pocket levels. You may notice cuts to your gym membership and alternative health coverage. Benefits that were offered last year, such as comprehensive dental, may well have been reduced.

The Congressional Budget Office estimates that the pending federal ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ and its sweeping budget changes are causing some of the worst Medicare cuts. NOTE: actual Medicare cuts will not be in the federal budget until 2027. Analysts from the Congressional Budget Office also estimate that the bill will cause Medicare to lose an estimated $500 billion of funding by the year 2035.

Please know that Medicare is not going away; however significant shifts have caused insurers to shrink standard benefits, cut extra benefits, and leave territories, while imposing stricter rules on prior authorizations and appeals.

Be sure you know what your plan looks like in 2026.

If you need a new plan or want to compare several, please

contact me through our contact form to set up a time to meet.

Best,

Mara