Major health systems, including Mayo Clinic, Mass General Brigham, Mount Sinai, and NewYork-Presbyterian, have dropped or are dropping Medicare Advantage (MA) contracts in 2026, according to a running list from Becker’s Hospital Review. If your hospital or doctor is one of them, it might be time to consider switching to Medigap.
The next question we get here at Senior65 is “Can switch to Medigap, also called Medicare Supplement insurance, without answering health questions.”
The answer depends on which of two different situations you’re in. Losing your entire MA plan gives you the federal right to switch to Medigap with no health questions. Losing just your hospital or doctor while your plan is a case-by-case right, can depend on the state you live in and it isn’t automatic.
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Situation 1: Your Whole Medicare Advantage Plan Is Ending
Insurers are exiting far more MA plans than usual for 2026 and 2027. Humana is sending non-renewal notices to about 600,000 members this fall, and the company expects to move only around 40% of them into other Humana plans, leaving roughly 360,000 people needing new coverage entirely.
When your entire MA plan is non-renewed or leaves your area, federal law gives you a guaranteed-issue right to buy a Medigap policy from any company that sells one in your state, with no health questions asked. You have access to Plans A, B, D, G, K, and L (plus C and F only if you were already Medicare-eligible before 2020, since those two are closed to newer enrollees). Plan N is not included in this right.
The enrollment window generally runs from December 8 through the end of February, tied to plans that end December 31. Your plan is required to send you a notice explaining this right.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Hold on to the letter you receive saying your Medicare advantage plan is ending because you will need it when applying for Medigap.
Once again: If your Medicare Advantage plan ends, you can usually get on a Medigap plan WITHOUT answering health questions.
Situation 2: Your Hospital or Doctor Left the Network, But Your Plan Continues
This is the situation behind most of the Becker’s list mentioned in the first paragraph. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) can treat a large enough network change (a hospital system or major provider group leaving your MA plan) as a “significant” change. CMS confirmed in December 2024 guidance to state insurance regulators that it doesn’t matter whether the plan or the provider ended the relationship. If CMS decides the change is significant, your MA plan must notify you of a special enrollment period that carries the same Medigap guaranteed-issue rights described above.
CMS makes this call case by case and hasn’t published what criteria they use to decide. This is a federal rule, so it can apply in any state. But it isn’t automatic just because a doctor’s practice or a hospital drops out of your plan. If a notice from your MA plan doesn’t mention Medigap guaranteed-issue rights, call 1-800-MEDICARE and ask directly whether CMS made a significant network change determination for your plan.
Freedom from network limits is part of why 96% of Medigap enrollees say their coverage lets them see the doctors and specialists they trust without worrying about network restrictions, according to AHIP.
If Neither Situation Fits, Underwriting Is Still an Option
Most people who want out of Medicare Advantage won’t qualify for either guaranteed-issue path above. That’s where medical underwriting comes in: you can apply for a Medigap plan at any time, and approval is possible even with some pre-existing conditions, though it’s never guaranteed. Our Medigap Underwriting Checker gives you a read on your odds before you apply for a Med Sup plan.
A few states also run their own year-round guaranteed-issue rules for switching from Medicare Advantage to Medigap, regardless of why you’re leaving MA. New York and Connecticut are the two main examples, letting residents make that switch on a guaranteed-issue basis at any time.
What To Do Next If Your Hospital Network is Leaving Your MA Plan
- Check any notice from your MA plan for language about a special enrollment period or Medigap guaranteed-issue rights.
- Call 1-800-MEDICARE and ask whether CMS made a significant network change determination for your plan (this gives you Medigap with no underwriting)
- Run the Medigap Underwriting Checker either way, so you know where you stand if the guaranteed-issue path doesn’t apply.
- Get a Medigap quote to compare cost against staying on Medicare Advantage.
Get a instant Medigap quote to see pricing in your state in about 30 seconds. If you’d rather talk it through first, call 800-930-7956 and our team at Senior65 can help you figure out which of these situations applies to you.