Members of HealthSpring Extra Rx, a stand-alone Medicare drug plan sold in Iowa, will be moved to a different plan on January 1 unless they act. Iowa’s Senior Health Insurance Information Program says the plan’s members go automatically to HealthSpring Assurance Rx, at a premium of $117.10 a month. Anyone who wants something else has until the end of open enrollment on December 7 to pick it.
At $117.10 a month, the premium comes to $1,405.20 over twelve months, before any deductible or copay. For a member who takes few medicines, that is a lot to pay for coverage that nobody chose.
What the automatic move means for Extra Rx members
SHIIP’s 2027 changes page lists HealthSpring Extra Rx, plan number S5617-375, among the Part D plans that are not offered next year. Members are moved to HealthSpring Assurance Rx, and the page says they may enroll in a different drug plan instead. Doing nothing means taking the move and the new premium. SHIIP says the premium is rising to $117.10 and does not list what members pay this year, so each member’s own 2026 bill is the number to compare against.
The state’s counselors add a practical tip: members should check whether Assurance Rx is still the best option for them. A move that keeps the same insurer does not guarantee that the same medicines are covered at the same prices. Each plan sets its own drug list, tiers and pharmacy network.
Anyone in Extra Rx should compare three things before December 7: the monthly premium, the yearly deductible and what each prescription costs at the pharmacy they use. Medicare’s plan finder lets a person enter every medicine and see a total for each plan. Without that step, $117.10 is only a number with nothing to measure it against.
Retirement deadlines, in your inbox: Miss an enrollment or claim deadline and the money can be gone. The Retirement Money Brief keeps you ahead of the ones that matter, every weekday.
Get the Retirement Money Brief →
We may earn a commission from links on this page.
Who sells HealthSpring plans now?
HealthSpring is the name Cigna’s Medicare plans carry today. NerdWallet reports that the name change followed Cigna’s sale of its Medicare business to Health Care Service Corp., a Chicago-based insurer, in March 2025. Its guide lists HealthSpring Assurance Rx and HealthSpring Extra Rx as the two drug plans for 2026.
The plan number to look for is S5617-375 for Extra Rx. SHIIP’s list is organized by those numbers, which makes it the quickest way to confirm that a notice and the state’s list describe the same plan.
Is $117.10 high for a drug plan?
National figures suggest it is far above the low end. CNN’s Tami Luhby reported on October 15 that no $0-premium stand-alone drug plans will be sold in 2027, though almost every state will have plans under $20 a month, according to a CNN report carried by KION. The same report says more than 1 million people are losing Part D plans, and that Aetna is leaving the market in about half of states.
Which low-premium plans are sold in Iowa is shown on Medicare’s plan finder. A cheap premium can come with a high deductible or a narrow drug list, so the monthly price alone does not settle the choice. The comparison has to include the medicines.
SHIIP also notes that expanded Medicare drug price negotiation lowers prices automatically in 2027 for a list of added drugs, among them Ozempic, Wegovy, Trelegy Ellipta, Xtandi and Ibrance. Members who take one of them should see how each plan prices it.
Accept the move or pick a cheaper drug plan?
For a member of Extra Rx, the open question is whether Assurance Rx earns its price on the specific prescriptions in the pill box. The answer comes from a side-by-side check, not from the plan’s name.
The Iowa Insurance Division says SHIIP-SMP has 430 trained volunteer counselors at 1-800-351-4664, that the program helps more than 55,000 Iowans a year, and that appointments fill quickly. Medicare’s own help line, 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), takes calls 24 hours a day. Switching plans should leave no gap on January 1.
The reason is the late enrollment penalty. Medicare.gov says it can apply after 63 or more days in a row without Medicare drug coverage or other creditable coverage. The charge is 1 percent of the national base beneficiary premium, $38.99 in 2026, for each full uncovered month, and it is added to the monthly premium. Members who get Extra Help do not pay it.
Extra Help is the federal program that lowers drug costs for people with limited income. A member who already gets it should confirm that the plan chosen for 2027 works with that help, because the premium on the notice is not always what such a member pays.
Extra Rx is one of several Iowa changes on SHIIP’s list. Aetna’s SilverScript Choice drug plan ends December 31 with no automatic replacement, and eight Medicare Advantage plans are canceled statewide. The Insurance Division says more than 87,000 Iowans got notices that a plan is canceled or leaving their county.
Staying in HealthSpring Assurance Rx at $117.10 a month?
Doing nothing moves an Extra Rx member into a plan that costs $1,405.20 a year in premiums alone, and nobody checks it against the medicines in the pill box. Members who skip the comparison pay the full premium for coverage they never priced.
The 2027 Medicare Open Enrollment Decision Kit includes a prescription-by-plan comparison and a cost calculator spreadsheet that compares plans on cost, drugs and doctors. Part 3, the Three-Year Cost Model, shows what a premium like this adds up to over time.
Test the Assurance Rx move against cheaper drug plans in the 2027 cost calculator →
More Financial Reading
- 17 Medicare Money Moves Now That Part D Caps at $2,400
- 21 Ways to Stretch a $2,087 Social Security Check
- 15 Steps to Stop the Scams That Took $7.7 Billion From Seniors
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by the 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.
