This article provides general information, not individual medical, legal, or tax advice. Confirm enrollment eligibility, coverage details, and start dates with Medicare and the plan before making changes. Ask HealthQuoted about licensing and plan availability in your state.
In this guide
- New ratings are out—but the enrollment rights are not new
- A one-year decline is different from a persistent warning
- Which four contracts received the 2027 warning?
- When can someone leave a consistently low-performing plan?
- The separate five-star option runs December 8, 2026–November 30, 2027
- A higher rating can still mean a different kind of coverage
New ratings are out—but the enrollment rights are not new
A lower star rating and a low-performing warning are not the same thing. That distinction matters if you or a family member is deciding whether to stay in a Medicare plan for 2027.
On October 8, 2026, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published the 2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D Star Ratings. Four Medicare Advantage contracts that include prescription drug coverage, known as MA-PD contracts, received the low-performing icon.
The ratings appear in Medicare Plan Finder for the annual Open Enrollment period running October 15 through December 7, 2026. Look up your specific plan there to check its 2027 rating and any warning icon.
The news is the annual ratings release—not a new coverage mandate or enrollment rule. Existing Special Enrollment Periods may give eligible people another opportunity to change plans.
A one-year decline is different from a persistent warning
Star Ratings measure the quality of health and prescription drug services. CMS says year-to-year changes are normal: contracts can perform differently over time, and the performance thresholds used to assign stars are recalculated each year.
The low-performing icon flags consistently low ratings. Separately, Medicare.gov describes an enrollment right for someone whose plan has been rated below three stars for the last three years. A single disappointing rating does not, by itself, establish that eligibility.
Hypothetical example: A contract falls from four stars to three-and-a-half stars. That is a decline worth understanding, but the decline alone does not mean the contract receives the low-performing icon or that its members qualify for the low-performing-plan Special Enrollment Period.
CMS: How ratings change and consistently low performers are identified ↗Medicare.gov: Special Enrollment Periods ↗
Which four contracts received the 2027 warning?
CMS lists these four MA-PD contracts in its appendix. The reasons distinguish Part C, the Medicare Advantage health coverage component, from Part D prescription drug coverage.
- H3814 — Atrio Health Plans. CMS lists Part C as the reason for the warning.
- H4982 — Aetna Better Health of California Inc. CMS lists the reason as Part C or D.
- H7389 — HealthSpring Life & Health Insurance Company, Inc. CMS lists Part C as the reason.
- H9066 — Visiting Nurse Association of Central New York. CMS lists Part D as the reason.
CMS appendix, Table A2: Contracts receiving the low-performing icon ↗
When can someone leave a consistently low-performing plan?
Medicare.gov says people enrolled in a plan rated below three stars for the last three years can switch to a Medicare Advantage plan or a Medicare drug plan at any time while they are in that low-performing plan.
This is separate from the five-star Special Enrollment Period. It is not simply an opportunity to switch whenever a plan loses a star, and the October 8 ratings announcement is not itself a replacement-coverage start date.
Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) to confirm whether your current enrollment qualifies and get help with an enrollment change. TTY users can call 1-877-486-2048. Have your plan name and contract ID available.
- Ask whether your current contract qualifies for the low-performing-plan Special Enrollment Period.
- Confirm which enrollment changes you can make under that option.
- Ask when the replacement coverage would begin and what happens to your current health and drug coverage.
Medicare.gov: Enrollment options for a plan rated below three stars for three years ↗
The separate five-star option runs December 8, 2026–November 30, 2027
The five-star Special Enrollment Period offers another route to change coverage. It does not depend on your current plan having a low-performing warning. Instead, it depends on an eligible five-star plan being available where you live.
For the 2027 plan year, the window runs from December 8, 2026, through November 30, 2027. Medicare allows this enrollment option to be used only once during that period.
CMS identified 15 five-star MA-PD contracts for 2027. That national count does not mean a five-star plan is available to you locally. CMS also reports no five-star stand-alone Part D contracts for 2027, so do not assume there is a five-star drug-only option.
- The destination must be a five-star Medicare Advantage plan, Medicare drug plan, or Medicare Cost Plan available in your area.
- A four-star or four-and-a-half-star plan does not satisfy the five-star requirement.
- The five-star window is different from both fall Open Enrollment and the low-performing-plan Special Enrollment Period.
Medicare.gov: Five-star Special Enrollment Period rules ↗CMS: Five-star contracts and stand-alone Part D ratings for 2027 ↗
A higher rating can still mean a different kind of coverage
Stars are quality information, not confirmation that a replacement plan preserves your current prescription coverage. Before making a ratings-driven switch, confirm whether the new plan includes Part D and how the change affects your Medicare Advantage enrollment.
Medicare.gov warns that moving from Medicare Advantage with drug coverage to a stand-alone Medicare drug plan ends the Medicare Advantage enrollment, including its health benefit. Your health services would then be covered through Original Medicare. This is a general switching caution—not evidence that a five-star stand-alone drug plan is available for 2027.
Moving from Medicare Advantage with drug coverage to a five-star Medicare Advantage plan without drug coverage can leave you without prescription drug coverage. Medicare warns that you may need to wait until another enrollment opportunity to obtain it and may face a Part D late enrollment penalty.
The practical next step is to verify your contract’s warning, confirm the enrollment option you qualify for, and understand the coverage change before submitting a request.
Medicare.gov: Coverage cautions when using the five-star enrollment option ↗
Common questions
Where can I find my plan’s 2027 rating?
CMS says the 2027 ratings were published in Medicare Plan Finder on October 8, 2026. Check your specific plan and contract rather than relying on the insurer’s name alone.
Does one year below three stars let me use the low-performing-plan Special Enrollment Period?
Not on that fact alone. Medicare.gov describes this option for people enrolled in a plan rated below three stars for the last three years. Call Medicare to confirm whether your current enrollment qualifies.
Do I have to wait for fall Open Enrollment if I qualify under the low-performing-plan rule?
Medicare.gov says the opportunity is available while you are enrolled in the qualifying low-performing plan. Ask Medicare to confirm eligibility, permitted changes, and the start date of replacement coverage.
Sources and publication details
Sources checked automatically Oct 13, 2026. AI-assisted article with automated editorial checks. Read our editorial process.