2027 Medicare Notice: Why It Matters More — AEP Opens Oct 15

By Marc Gilman

The safety net that's kept your Medicare premium increases small for the past two years just disappeared. Your Annual Notice of Change this year is the first one telling you what that actually costs.

Nearly a third of Medicare beneficiaries throw their Annual Notice of Change straight in the recycling bin without opening it, according to an eHealth survey. Most years, that's a forgivable shortcut. This year, it's a genuinely expensive one.

Why This Year Is Different

For 2025 and 2026, a temporary federal program — the Part D Premium Stabilization Demonstration — gave insurers financial support specifically to keep stand-alone Part D premium increases from spiking too fast while the industry adjusted to the Inflation Reduction Act's new drug-cost caps. In 2026, that program lowered monthly premiums by an estimated $16 per person, according to Kiplinger. CMS has now confirmed the demonstration ends after 2026, per KFF.

Without it, stand-alone Part D premiums for 2027 lose their cushion — some beneficiaries could see increases in the $11 to $20 a month range, against a 2026 average stand-alone premium of $36. KFF's Juliette Cubanski cautions that "some Part D stand-alone drug plan enrollees could face a larger premium increase for drug coverage next year than in recent years" (Kiplinger). Medicare Advantage plans aren't directly hit by this particular subsidy cut, and generally received higher 2027 reimbursements from CMS — but that doesn't mean MA is unaffected this year, just that this specific pressure point is narrower than it might sound.

There's a second reason this year's notice matters more than usual: stand-alone Part D plan choices have been shrinking fast. Five years ago, the average beneficiary could pick from around 30 stand-alone drug plans. By 2026, that was down to just 11 — a 63% drop, including a 22% single-year drop from 2025 to 2026 alone, according to Kiplinger. Your current plan may simply not be one of the options still standing next year.

Your Annual Notice of Change is the one document that tells you, specifically, what your plan is actually doing about both.

What Your ANOC Actually Tells You

Your ANOC highlights what's changing — it's not the full rulebook. That fuller version is a separate document called the Evidence of Coverage, worth pulling out only if something in the ANOC actually raises a question.

• If you have a Part D plan, it tells you whether your premium, deductible, and copays are changing, and whether your specific prescriptions are still covered — and at what cost.

• If you have Medicare Advantage, it tells you whether your doctors and hospitals are staying in-network, and whether extra benefits like dental, vision, or hearing are being trimmed.

• Medigap plans don't send this notice at all — their costs don't restructure the same way year to year.

Read It Like This, Not Like a Chore

You don't need to memorize it. You need about 15 minutes and three specific questions:

1. Is my premium, deductible, or copay changing — and by how much?

2. Are my actual prescriptions still covered, at a cost I recognize?

3. Are my actual doctors and hospitals still in-network?

A small premium bump alone usually isn't a reason to switch plans. A dropped medication or a doctor falling out of network usually is.

Don't Wait Until December to Deal With It

Letters have historically landed anywhere from mid to late September. Whatever week yours arrives, the honest advice is: don't sit on it. Brokers and agents get genuinely swamped in the final weeks of the Annual Enrollment Period, which opens October 15 and runs through December 7 — many stop taking new requests altogether close to the deadline (Kiplinger). Reading your notice the week it lands, instead of the week enrollment closes, is the difference between having options and running out of time to use them.

What To Do Next

If your notice shows a change you don't understand — or you just want a second set of eyes before AEP closes — let's go through it together.

Questions? Call (800) 927-9326 or email marc@gilmanagency.com

Prefer we reach out to you instead? Complete our Permission to Contact form and a licensed Gilman Agency agent will follow up.

Sources: CMS, Announcement of Calendar Year 2027 Medicare Advantage Capitation Rates and Part C and Part D Payment Policies (April 6, 2026); CMS, Contract Year 2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D Final Rule (April 2, 2026); CMS, Medicare Part D 2027 National Average Monthly Bid Amount Information (July 2026); Forbes, "Medicare's 2027 Annual Enrollment Period Brings Major Shifts In Part D And Advantage Plans" by Bob Carlson (August 2026); Kiplinger, "8 Changes Coming to Medicare in 2027" by Donna LeValley (September 2026), including commentary from Juliette Cubanski, KFF; KFF, Part D plan availability data; Medicare.gov, upcoming plan changes guidance; eHealth, Medicare ANOC Survey.

This article is for general educational purposes and reflects information available as of the publication date. Actual premium, deductible, and coverage changes vary by plan and carrier — always review your own Annual Notice of Change and confirm current details directly with your plan or at medicare.gov. This is not a recommendation regarding any specific plan.