Your 2027 Guide to Medicare Open Enrollment: What to Review Before December 7
Medicare's Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, for coverage that takes effect January 1, 2027. Here is exactly what changed, what to check, and where Maryland families can get free, unbiased help.
Every fall, more than 68 million Americans on Medicare get a seven-week window to change their coverage for the year ahead, and most of them let it pass without opening the mail that tells them what actually changed.
For Maryland families managing care for an aging parent, that envelope matters more than it looks. A quiet shift in a plan's drug formulary, provider network, or out-of-pocket maximum in January can mean a denied claim, a lost specialist, or a prescription that suddenly costs three times as much, right in the middle of a year when you can't do anything about it.
Why This Review Matters Even If You Love Your Current Plan
The most common mistake families make during the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) is assuming that if nothing has gone wrong this year, nothing needs to be reviewed. But Medicare plans are not static.
Every plan — Medicare Advantage and standalone Part D alike — is legally required to send an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) by September 30 each year, and insurers are permitted to adjust premiums, deductibles, provider networks, and drug formularies annually.
A plan that was the right fit in 2026 can look very different on January 1, 2027.
For a family helping an aging parent manage this, three changes deserve a second look every single year, regardless of how satisfied anyone was with the plan in the year that is ending:
The provider network. Medicare Advantage plans can add or drop hospitals and specialists each year. A cardiologist or primary care doctor your parent has seen for a decade can simply fall out of network on January 1.
The drug formulary and tier placement. A medication that was a low-cost generic tier this year can move to a higher tier next year, or require a new prior authorization.
The out-of-pocket maximum and copay structure. Even small shifts here compound quickly for someone managing several chronic conditions.
What Changed Heading Into 2027
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has signaled that 2027 brings genuine relief on the premium side, alongside a few structural shifts worth understanding before you compare plans.
A Medicare Subsidy Program is Winding Down
The temporary Part D Premium Stabilization Demonstration, which has helped hold drug plan premiums down in recent years, is scheduled to discontinue in 2027.
For most standalone Part D enrollees, the projected premium increase is still modest (under $1/month on average), but it is part of why comparing this year's actual plan offerings — rather than assuming "about the same as last year" — matters more than usual this cycle.
Original Medicare vs. Medicare Advantage: The Distinction That Decides Everything Else
Before reviewing anything else, it helps to be clear on which "track" your parent is on, since the review checklist is different for each.
Neither track is universally "better"; the right one depends on how often your parent travels, how attached they are to a specific specialist, and how predictable they want their monthly costs to be. What matters for this review is confirming which track they are actually on today and whether this year's plan details still fit that reality.
The Four Ways You Can Change Coverage During AEP
Annual Enrollment is the one stretch of the year where nearly every type of Medicare coverage change is on the table at once. Outside of AEP, most of these moves are restricted to special circumstances.
01. Switch Original Medicare → Medicare Advantage
Move from Parts A & B into a Medicare Advantage plan, often to add drug coverage and extra benefits in one monthly premium.
02. Switch Medicare Advantage → Original Medicare
Return to Original Medicare, typically to regain an out-of-network specialist or remove referral requirements. Note: a Medigap policy may require medical underwriting if applied for outside your initial window.
03. Switch from one Medicare Advantage plan to another
Move insurers or plan tiers entirely — the most common AEP change, usually driven by a network, premium, or formulary shift.
04. Switch Part D prescription drug plans
Change standalone drug coverage even if medical coverage stays the same — often the single highest-impact change for someone on several prescriptions.
What Medicare Does Not Cover: The Home Care Gap Families Miss
This is the single most common misunderstanding we encounter in Maryland families, and it belongs in every Open Enrollment review:
Medicare, Original or Advantage, does not pay for ongoing, non-medical in-home care. It covers short-term, medically necessary skilled home health (nursing visits, physical therapy) following a doctor's order, usually for a limited number of weeks.
It does not cover an aide who helps with bathing, dressing, meal preparation, medication reminders, or simply being present so a parent is not alone — the kind of custodial care most aging-in-place families actually need day-to-day.
Some Medicare Advantage plans now include a limited allowance for in-home support as a supplemental benefit, which is worth specifically asking about when comparing plans this AEP. But for most families, long-term in-home care is a separate budget line entirely, with its own funding sources. If this review is the first time your family is confronting that gap, our in-home care cost guide for Maryland families walks through real hourly rates, financial support options like VA Aid & Attendance, and the Medicaid waiver programs that can help once Medicare's coverage runs out.
The one place this boundary runs the other way is right after a hospital stay: short-term skilled home health is something Medicare covers, and families often underuse it.
How To Review or Update Your Plan
Here’s how to make informed choices during Open Enrollment:
1. Visit Medicare.gov and use the Plan Finder Tool to compare plans by cost, coverage, and quality ratings.
2. Confirm every doctor and hospital is still in-network for 2027: Do this directly through the plan, not from memory of last year's list. Provider networks are reconfirmed annually and can change without much notice.
3. Call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) for personalized support.
4. Get free, unbiased help from your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP).
Untangling Medicare Is Easier With Support
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Open Enrollment often surfaces the bigger question underneath it. Whether your parent's current living and care arrangement is still the right one. If that conversation is on your mind too, Spirit of Hope Homecare offers a free, no-obligation in-home assessment.
Serving families in Anne Arundel, Howard, Baltimore, and Montgomery Counties, Maryland
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