Connecticut’s average Medicare Advantage premium rises about 50 percent for 2027, from $16.89 to $25.31 a month, and Idaho’s climbs 36 percent, from $27.81 to $37.93, according to the state-by-state fact sheets CMS published Sept. 28. Both moves run against the national average, which the agency said falls to $12.00 from $14.37. For members in those two states, the national decline is not the figure that applies.
Thirteen sheets point down and four point up
The CMS fact sheets report, for each state, the number of Medicare Advantage plans in 2026 and 2027 and how “the average monthly MA plan premium changed” between the two years. Read from Alabama through Kentucky, the sheets carry premium data for 16 states and the District of Columbia. The average fell in 13 of them and rose in four: California, Connecticut, Florida and Idaho. California’s moved from $13.77 to $14.12 and Florida’s from $1.83 to $2.13, small steps beside the $8.42 added in Connecticut and the $10.12 added in Idaho. Three of the four rising states also lost plans: California went from 402 to 394, Florida from 611 to 560 and Idaho from 48 to 44, while Connecticut gained one. Alaska, American Samoa and Guam show no Medicare Advantage figures.
Nationally, CMS said in its Sept. 28 announcement that the weighted average monthly premium falls to $12.00 from $14.37, a 16.5 percent decline, and that about eight in 10 Medicare Advantage members can keep their plan at the same or a lower premium. CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz framed the release around keeping care options affordable and accessible. On the drug side, CMS put the average stand-alone drug plan premium at $36 in 2027, up less than $1 from $35.09, and the drug portion of a Medicare Advantage premium at $7, down from $11.32. The agency also said the Part D Premium Stabilization Demonstration is discontinued in 2027. The state sheets show that the national direction is not universal.
Connecticut: 48 plans and a higher average anyway
Connecticut goes from 47 Medicare Advantage plans to 48, so the increase does not come from a shrinking menu. The same fact sheets list 10 stand-alone drug plans for the state in 2027. Multiplied over a year, the average premium moves from $202.68 to $303.72, or $101.04 more, before any other cost of the plan is counted.
Connecticut’s Department of Aging and Disability Services runs CHOICES, which the state describes as “a free program that gives clear and unbiased help with health insurance.” The program helps residents compare Medicare Advantage and Part D plans and can be reached at 1-800-994-9422.
Idaho: four fewer plans and a $10.12 step up
Idaho’s plan count falls from 48 to 44 while its average premium goes from $27.81 to $37.93. Over 12 months that is $455.16, against $333.72 for the 2026 average, a difference of $121.44. The sheets list eight stand-alone drug plans in the state for 2027.
The Idaho Department of Insurance operates the Senior Health Insurance Benefits Advisors program, known as SHIBA, which lists “Changes to Medicare” workshops beginning in October 2026 and continuing through November, December and February 2027. Its Medicare Help Line is 1-800-247-4422, and the program covers Medicare Advantage, Medigap and Medicare prescription drug plans.
What a state average leaves out
In percentage terms, Connecticut’s rise of about 50 percent is roughly three times Florida’s 16 percent, and Idaho’s 36 percent is more than double it, yet 13 of the 17 jurisdictions read went the other way. The sheets give one figure per state, set against 48 plans in Connecticut and 44 in Idaho. A single plan’s premium can sit above or below that number, so the average marks the direction of a state’s market rather than the price of any one plan. The premium also comes on top of another bill: Medicare.gov lists the 2026 standard Part B premium at $202.90 a month and says people in Medicare Advantage keep paying it along with any plan costs. The same page points to Medicare Savings Programs, which are for people with limited income and resources and help pay premiums, and to Extra Help, which helps pay plan premiums and other drug costs.
The Oct. 15 window for testing a plan against the average
Medicare’s Open Enrollment runs Oct. 15 to Dec. 7. During it, members can join, drop or switch a Medicare Advantage plan, switch to a drug plan if they are in Original Medicare, or move between Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage. A change takes effect Jan. 1 if the request is received by Dec. 7.
State counselors are part of a national network of State Health Insurance Assistance Programs, which SHIP describes as offering “one-on-one counseling from a trusted, unbiased source.” The national number is 877-839-2675. Beyond the Medicare Advantage figures, the CMS sheets list 10 stand-alone drug plans in Connecticut and eight in Idaho, the alternatives for a member who leaves a Medicare Advantage plan with drug coverage for Original Medicare and a separate drug plan.
State help with Medicare premiums and drug costs
Medicare beneficiaries on limited incomes may qualify for state-run programs that lower premiums and drug costs, and the limits and application steps differ from one state to the next. Those programs sit apart from the choice of a plan, so a plan comparison alone does not surface them.
The Medicare Cost & Coverage Protection Kit pairs 51 state Medicare cost-help packs with a medication and cost tracker for logging what each plan and program costs over a year.
See the state cost-help packs in The Medicare Cost & Coverage Protection Kit.
This article was produced with AI assistance and checked against the primary sources linked above.
David M. Keller is a finance writer based in Columbus, Ohio, covering personal finance and consumer-focused economic topics. He earned his degree in journalism from Ohio University and began his career reporting on local business and economic trends for a regional media outlet. Since then, he has contributed to a variety of online publications, focusing on clear, practical coverage of topics such as cost of living, debt, and everyday financial decision-making.
