Two of the biggest names in Medicare Advantage are heading in opposite directions for 2027. Devoted Health is expanding to 740 plans from 427, while Centene is cutting its lineup to 210 plans from 303, according to a Becker’s Hospital Review analysis of federal landscape data published Oct. 1. Open enrollment starts Oct. 15, so members will be looking at the new lineups within days.
Becker’s put the swing in percentages: Devoted’s plan count rises 73%, and Centene drops nearly one-third of its portfolio. The analysis also found that only four organizations are entering the market overall in 2027, which means most of the change comes from established insurers adding to, or trimming, what they already sell.
For anyone on a Medicare Advantage plan, the question is which 2027 plan fits their drugs and doctors, including members whose current plan is staying. Annual enrollment, which Medicare.gov lists as Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, lets members join, drop or switch Medicare Advantage plans, with coverage beginning Jan. 1. A plan can keep its name and still change its drug list, network and costs, so a lineup as unsettled as this one makes a side-by-side comparison worthwhile.
Plan-count news like this is industry-wide rather than personal, so the related job is checking next year’s plan against a member’s own medicines and doctors, and The 2027 Medicare Open Enrollment Decision Kit includes a cost calculator spreadsheet that compares plans on cost, drugs and doctors for that purpose.
Run the 2027 plan numbers with the cost calculator before Oct. 15 →
Where Devoted is growing
Devoted’s own 2027 materials, embargoed until Oct. 1, say the company is expanding to five new states, for a total of 34 states and 1,341 counties, including 342 new counties. The company names Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Hampshire and New Jersey as its new states. A separate Becker’s Payer Issues report on the same expansion lists New York in place of Delaware.
County totals tell the same story. A Becker’s Payer Issues analysis published Sept. 30 puts Devoted at 1,341 counties in 2027, up from 999 in 2026. In special needs plans, which serve people with particular health conditions or both Medicare and Medicaid, Devoted is leading the way with a net increase of 350 counties, up 35.4% from 2026, Becker’s said.
Where Centene is pulling back
Centene’s retreat shows up in the same county data. The Sept. 30 analysis has Centene declining from 1,731 counties in 2026 to 1,387 in 2027. The Oct. 1 analysis counts the plans themselves, 210 next year against 303 now. A member of a Centene-run plan whose plan is cut will receive a notice from the plan, and the replacement options in that county depend on what other insurers are selling there.
What a changing market means for members
More plans from one insurer do not make any single plan better for a given member. A larger lineup can mean more choices in a county, but premiums, drug formularies and provider networks differ plan by plan, and Becker’s figures describe counts rather than benefits. The landscape data also shows the same market shrinking for other insurers: Health Care Service Corporation, which bought Cigna’s Medicare business, is offering 200 plans in 2027, down from 283, and selling in 478 counties, down from 948. In Texas alone, HCSC goes from 229 counties to 47. Those cuts, together with Centene’s, mean that members in some counties will see fewer plans on the Plan Finder than they did a year ago, even where Devoted or another insurer has added options elsewhere.
Comparing 2027 plans before December 7
The free place to compare is the Medicare Plan Finder, which shows every plan sold in a ZIP code with premiums, drug costs and star ratings. The Annual Notice of Change that a member’s current plan sends in the fall spells out what is different for 2027, including costs, the drug list and the provider network, and reading it comes before any switch.
A member who is comparing should write down each medicine and dose, each doctor and the pharmacy used. Checking the plan’s drug list for each medicine, then the doctors’ network status, narrows the field quickly. Total yearly cost, meaning premium plus expected drug and doctor costs, is a better measure than the premium on its own. Members who are happy with their current plan can still use the tool to confirm that it remains competitive, since a plan that stays in a county can raise premiums or change its formulary for 2027.
Becker’s figures come from the federal plan landscape for 2027, and Medicare.gov’s tools reflect the same plan data when a member searches by ZIP code.
For members who want the dates and the comparison in one place, The 2027 Medicare Open Enrollment Decision Kit combines the Open Enrollment calendar with a 42-page decision kit that walks through the choice.
Click here to get The 2027 Medicare Open Enrollment Decision Kit for the Oct. 15 start →
This article was produced with AI assistance and reviewed by The Financial Wire’s editorial team.
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.
