If you are like me, you toss most of the "notifications" you get every few weeks from your insurance company, thinking they are the same old ones. But in the fall of 2025, a huge disruption occurred with many Medicare Advantage plans. Many insurance companies claimed that they were not making enough profits. Letters went out to 3 million Medicare Advantage recipients telling them they would be dropped or moved to a different plan. Some plans are leaving certain areas. And others are cutting some of their benefits

The largest number of members is being dropped by United Healthcare - nearly 600,000. Additionally, United sent letters to some primary care providers, asking them to confirm a patient's medical history. United warned the provider that if the letter was not completed, the patient would risk being dropped. Who knows how many providers did not complete, deleted them, or just left them in the FAX machine to rot?

The moral of this story is:

1. It's too late to elect a new plan, but what you can do is check your insurance to be sure it is still active before you plan to use it and before you get sick.

2. Check your benefits for changes: If you were getting non-medical or lifestyle "perks" - like credits to use for "non-healthy" foods like chocolate chip cookies, potato chips, soda (ugh), lower monthly food allowances, rides to appointments and non-medical transportation, some in-home support, some gym memberships not related to medical need, humidifiers and plenty of other things. Check your policy.

3. Some copays will be increasing.

So, where does all that money we pay for insurance go? True, the cost of healthcare is going up; most likely, it is lining the pockets of insurance CEOs. Most, if not all, earn more than $ 15 to $ 20 million a year. Does it ever dawn on them that they should cut down on all the paperwork they send us in the mail? They send out reams of paperwork that members have to try to sift through. All it does is make things more complicated and reduce their liability. Maybe that's the point: making it more difficult for the average consumer to read.

Check your current policy to be sure you know what you are getting and what to expect.

Typically, if you have had the following occur, you may qualify for SEP (a special enrollment period) for two months after your enrollment ended or plan was changed to another:

• Plans that exit your county

• Plans that terminate their contract

• Plans that don’t renew for 2026

• Plans that auto‑move you into a different plan you didn’t choose

  
  

  By the way, if you cannot understand what your coverage or letters from the insurance company say, have a family member or friend help you out.