If your Medicare Advantage Plan is leaving the County, or if any part of your Medicare Advantage Plan has increased price or reduced benefits above a certain amount, you will have a guaranteed issue right to switch to a Medicare Supplement (Medigap Plan) without any health screening. Your deadline to leave your plan and select a Medigap varies by each plan.
Medigap plans do not cover prescriptions. You will need a separate Prescription Drug Plan.
EXCEPTION: Those with Medi-Cal with no Share of Cost are not eligible to purchase a Medigap policy.
HELP! My Medicare Advantage plan is leaving the County.
The AARP from UHC (United Healthcare) Advantage Plan is leaving the County. This allows you to purchase a Medigap policy, without any health screening, from any company selling medigap policies, not just AARP/UHC. You may also purchase a stand-alone prescription drug plan at this time.
In order to have continuous coverage, you should complete enrollment in a Medigap and a drug plan before December 31, 2026. If you do not make a change by December 31, 2026, you will have just Original Medicare Parts A and B and no drug coverage starting in January. You will need your letter of termination from your Advantage plan to prove your right to get a Medigap plan.
If you do not enroll by the end of 2026, you have additional time to make changes. The deadline to join a drug plan is February 28th. The deadline to enroll in a Medigap is May 2nd. You may enroll in any Medigap, from any company. Coverage by the Medigap or drug plan will start the first of the month following your enrollment, or January 1, 2027, if enrolling before that date.
I am unhappy with my Medicare Advantage Plan!
All of the 2026 Medicare Advantage Plans have either raised costs or reduced benefits which, under California law, entitles you to purchase a Medigap policy without any health screening. If the parent company sells Medigap policies (Humana), you must purchase a policy from the parent company. Purchasing a stand-alone prescription plan is also available to you at this time.
Plans which allow you to leave and purchase Medigap:
| Humana Choice PPO | Kaiser Senior Advantage Basic |
| Imperial Dynamic | Kaiser Senior Advantage Enhanced |
| Imperial Courage | Imperial Senior Value |
You must disenroll from your plan by December 7th for an effective date of January 1st 2027. (Some plans allow extra time)
If you are in any of the Kaiser or remaining Imperial plans:
The deadline to disenroll from your Medicare Advantage plan and join a Prescription Drug Plan is December 7th . Coverage in the drug plan will start January 1, 2027.
The deadline to enroll in an Medigap plan offered by any company is March 3, 2027. Coverage by the Medicare Supplement will start the first of the month following your enrollment or January 1, 2027, if enrolling before that date.
If you are in Humana Choice PPO:
This plans allows extra time to purchase a Medigap without health screening. You have until Feb. 28, 2027 to disenroll from your Medicare Advantage plan. You must purchase a Medigap from Humana. The deadline to purchase a Medigap is March 3, 2027. The deadline to purchase a prescription drug plan is March 31, 2027.
Coverage by the Medigap will start the first of the month following your enrollment. To ensure continuous coverage, you should enroll in a drug plan and Medigap plan in the same month you disenroll from your current plan.
Once covered by a Medigap plan, you can change to an equal or lesser plan at a different company at your birthday and the following 59 days.
Proof of your right to switch to a Medigap.
To exercise your right to buy a Medigap plan without health screening due to a change with your MA plan, you must provide the Medigap company with documentation showing the price change that allows this right. Find the “proof” for your Guaranteed Issue Right in the ANOC (Annual Notice of Change) you received from your insurer. OR Contact us and ask us to email it to you. (Provide your name, email address, phone number, and Plan name in your message).