If you're on a Humana Medicare Advantage plan, a specific piece of mail is worth watching for this fall. Humana confirmed in late July that it's exiting Medicare Advantage plans covering roughly 600,000 members nationwide for 2027 — its second consecutive year of plan cuts, driven largely by falling quality ratings and a push toward a specific profit target. Federally required non-renewal letters are expected by October 2. If yours arrives, it comes with real protections attached, including one that's easy to miss: the right to buy a Medicare Supplement plan without being medically underwritten. Here's what's actually happening and exactly what to do if the letter lands in your mailbox.
📋Quick Summary
- Humana confirmed on its July 29, 2026 earnings call that it's exiting Medicare Advantage plans covering approximately 600,000 members for 2027.
- This is Humana's second consecutive year of MA plan exits — it also cut plans for 2026.
- The exits primarily target lower-rated plans, generally those at 3.5 stars or below.
- The driver: declining Star Ratings have reduced Humana's quality bonus payments from CMS, adding pressure toward the company's stated goal of a sustainable ~3% profit margin by 2028.
- Federally required non-renewal letters are expected in September, with notice required by October 2.
- Humana expects to move just over 40% of affected members into other Humana plans — meaning most affected members will need to actively choose new coverage.
- A plan non-renewal is a qualifying event that triggers BOTH a Special Enrollment Period and a guaranteed-issue right to buy Medigap without medical underwriting.
- After the exits, Humana's Medicare Advantage footprint covers 46 states and about 85% of U.S. counties.
Why Humana Is Cutting Plans — Two Years Running
Humana's decision isn't a sudden or isolated move — it's the second year in a row the company has trimmed its Medicare Advantage footprint, and the reasoning behind it is worth understanding because it shapes what kind of plans are being cut.
The proximate driver is Star Ratings. CMS scores every Medicare Advantage plan from one to five stars based on a combination of quality and performance measures, and those ratings directly determine whether a plan receives a quality bonus payment on top of its base reimbursement. Humana's Star Ratings have declined in recent measurement cycles, and CEO Jim Rechtin acknowledged on the July earnings call that the company's most recent ratings slipped again, even as he described the company as making real underlying progress. Lower ratings mean smaller bonus payments, which squeezes the profitability of exactly the plans Humana is now exiting.
That financial pressure sits inside a broader company target: Humana has said its goal is returning to a sustainable roughly 3% pre-tax profit margin by 2028, and the 2027 plan exits are explicitly framed as part of getting there. Rather than reducing benefits uniformly across its entire portfolio, the company is concentrating its cuts on specific lower-performing, lower-return plans — generally those rated 3.5 stars or below — while stating an intent to preserve and strengthen its higher-rated offerings.
The scale is real but bounded. After the 2027 exits, Humana's Medicare Advantage business will still cover 46 states and roughly 85% of U.S. counties — a large national footprint, just a somewhat smaller one than today, concentrated more heavily on plans the company considers financially sustainable and highly rated.
Related: Is Medicare Advantage Finally Stabilizing for 2027? and Why Did My 2026 Medicare Plan Cut My Benefits?
Sources: Healthcare Dive — Humana to exit more Medicare Advantage plans in 2027; Becker's Payer Issues — Humana to exit plans covering 600,000 members.
Federal law grants a guaranteed-issue right to buy a Medicare Supplement (Medigap) policy when your Medicare Advantage plan is discontinued through no fault of your own — insurers cannot reject your application or charge you more because of pre-existing health conditions during this window. This is a meaningfully bigger deal than it sounds: outside of protected periods like this one, most states allow medical underwriting, meaning an insurer can decline you or price you higher based on your health history.
If your Humana plan is among those being cut, this is your opportunity to price Medigap Plan G — which covers nearly every cost-sharing gap in Original Medicare — without worrying about underwriting. Before accepting whatever replacement Advantage plan you're offered, it's worth comparing that option against Original Medicare plus Medigap while this guaranteed-issue window is open.
What the Letter Actually Says — and What It Doesn't Mean
If you're a Humana Medicare Advantage member, watch your mailbox in September. Federal rules require insurers to notify affected members of a plan non-renewal, and for 2027 exits that notice must go out by October 2.
It's worth being precise about what a non-renewal letter does and doesn't tell you. It means your specific plan — not necessarily all Humana coverage in your area — will not be offered again starting January 1, 2027. It does not mean Humana is exiting the Medicare Advantage business, and it does not mean every Humana member is affected; the exits are targeted at specific lower-performing plans, not the company's entire book of business.
If you receive the letter, don't set it aside as routine paperwork. Humana has said it expects to move just over 40% of affected members into other Humana plans automatically or through a proactive offer — which means a majority of people receiving this letter will need to actively choose new coverage rather than assume they'll be seamlessly transitioned. A policy can be discontinued even when the member was satisfied with the doctors, benefits, and premium; the decision is about the plan's overall financial performance, not about any individual member's experience.
If you take no action after receiving a non-renewal notice, you will default to Original Medicare Parts A and B on January 1, 2027 — with no prescription drug coverage and no supplemental coverage, unless you separately enroll in a standalone Part D plan and a Medigap policy. For anyone on regular medications, that gap is a real financial risk, not a technicality.
Related: Why This September Medicare Letter Matters More Than Any Other and Should You Switch Medicare Plans Before December 7?
Sources: Yahoo Finance — Humana Is Cutting Medicare Advantage Plans for 2027; Mauldin Insurance Group — What to Do If You Get a Letter.
Related Medicare Updates
✅What This Means for You
Explore Further
More on both: What Does 2026 Medicare Plan G Actually Cover? and What's Changing for Medicare in 2027
How to Actually Compare What You're Offered
If your plan is discontinued, the instinct is often to take whatever replacement is offered and move on. A little more diligence here goes a long way, particularly given the guaranteed-issue window this triggers.
Start with your doctors and hospitals. Call each provider's office directly and confirm they accept the specific replacement plan you're considering — not just "Humana" generally, but the exact plan name and number. Network participation can vary significantly between plans from the same insurer.
Check every medication by name. Formularies differ plan to plan, even within the same company. A drug that was covered at a low tier on your old plan may sit at a higher tier — or require prior authorization — on a replacement.
Price Medigap Plan G seriously, not just as a formality. Because your plan's non-renewal grants guaranteed issue, this is a rare opportunity to access Medigap regardless of health history. Plan G covers nearly every out-of-pocket gap Original Medicare leaves behind except the annual Part B deductible, and combined with a standalone Part D plan, it can be a genuinely stronger option than jumping to another Medicare Advantage plan — particularly if you have ongoing health needs where predictable costs matter more than a low headline premium.
Compare total annual cost, not premium alone. Use Medicare.gov's Plan Finder to run your actual medications and providers against every plan available in your area, not just the one you're handed. Our Medicare cost and comparison tools can help you frame the numbers before you sit down with the Plan Finder.
Don't wait until December to decide. A plan non-renewal typically grants a Special Enrollment Period that extends beyond the standard Annual Enrollment deadline, but starting early gives you more time to verify network and formulary details properly rather than rushing a decision.
If any of this feels like more than you want to navigate alone, a State Health Insurance Assistance Program counselor will walk through your specific options at no cost and with no financial stake in which plan you choose — find a SHIP counselor for free Medicare help in your state.
📊Humana's 2027 Medicare Advantage Exits at a Glance
Sources: Becker's Payer Issues, Forbes Advisor, Healthcare Dive.
The Broader Pattern This Fits Into
Humana's exits aren't happening in isolation — they're part of a multi-year pattern across the Medicare Advantage industry that's worth understanding for context, even if your specific plan isn't affected this year.
Insurers across the market have been recalibrating their Medicare Advantage footprints as federal payment rates, medical cost trends, and Star Ratings pressures shift the economics of individual plans. Humana itself offered coverage in three fewer states and 194 fewer counties in 2026 than the year before, even as more generous benefits relative to competitors drew over a million new members into its remaining plans. That combination — a shrinking footprint alongside genuine member growth in the plans that remain — captures the broader dynamic: insurers are increasingly willing to exit specific unprofitable markets while doubling down on plans they believe can hit their margin targets.
For beneficiaries, the practical lesson isn't that any specific plan is unstable — it's that Medicare Advantage plan continuity, as a category, deserves more year-to-year attention than it used to. A plan that's worked well for years can still be discontinued for reasons that have nothing to do with your individual satisfaction, and the protections that come with a genuine non-renewal — the Special Enrollment Period, the guaranteed-issue Medigap right — exist precisely because this pattern has become common enough to require them.
Whether or not you're affected by this specific round of Humana exits, it's a useful annual prompt: read your Annual Notice of Change closely regardless of which insurer you're with, and know that if you ever do receive a genuine non-renewal letter, you have real protections and real time to use them.
Related: Is Your 2026 Medicare Hospital Still Taking Your Plan? and Why Did My 2026 Medicare Plan Cut My Benefits?
Related Medicare Coverage
- What Does 2026 Medicare Plan G Actually Cover? — the natural next read if your guaranteed-issue window opens
- Why This September Medicare Letter Matters More Than Any Other
- Should You Switch Medicare Plans Before December 7?
- Is Medicare Advantage Finally Stabilizing for 2027?
- What's Changing for Medicare in 2027
- Is Your 2026 Medicare Hospital Still Taking Your Plan?
