Medicare Advantage

Kane County Medicare Advantage count for Aurora residents

People in Aurora can choose from 58 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027, against 70 this year. 19 of this year’s plans are gone, 7 are new to Kane County, and 24 that continue have changed their premium, deductible, plan type or name, 8 of them under a new name.

AURORA, Ill. — If you're turning 65 in Aurora, or you already have Medicare and want to review your coverage for 2027, here's the big-picture number to know: Aurora is in Kane County, where 50 Medicare Advantage plans are available for the coming year, according to CMS Medicare Plan Finder data.

Aurora seniors have plenty of Medicare choices for 2027

That's a lot of options to sort through — and this article is about how many choices you actually have, not which one to pick. Understanding the size of the local market is the first step to making a calm, informed decision during open enrollment.

What the 2027 numbers look like in Kane County

Here are the area-level counts for the county Aurora sits in, straight from CMS:

• 50 Medicare Advantage plans available in Kane County
• 11 insurance carriers offering Medicare Advantage plans that include drug coverage (MA-PD)
• 80,391 residents age 65 and older across the county

Those figures tell you two useful things. First, competition is healthy — nearly a dozen carriers are selling to Aurora-area seniors. Second, the sheer number of plans means comparison shopping matters. A plan that fits your neighbor's doctors, prescriptions, and budget may not fit yours.

Plan availability is set at the county level, not the city level. So whether you live near downtown Aurora, on the west side toward Fox Valley, or up in the North Aurora area, the same Kane County plan menu applies to you.

A note on stand-alone Part D and Star Ratings

Two other numbers are worth mentioning, because readers ask about them every fall.

For stand-alone Part D, Illinois has 12 stand-alone Part D plans for 2026, sold statewide, according to the CMS Part D Landscape file. CMS sells PDPs by PDP region rather than county by county, so every county in Illinois shares the same statewide list, and anyone with Original Medicare in the state can join one of them. If you want a stand-alone drug plan to pair with Original Medicare or a Medigap policy, use Plan Finder at medicare.gov to see the plans that serve your ZIP code.

On Star Ratings: CMS rates Medicare contracts from 1 to 5 stars based on quality and member experience. Under CMS's 2026 Star Ratings, 9 of the Medicare Advantage contracts offering plans in Kane County are rated 4 stars or higher (out of 31 contracts, 24 of which have a 2026 Star Rating). Star Ratings can be a helpful data point, but they are one factor among many — network, drug list, and total cost still matter more for most people.

Key 2027 Medicare facts every Aurora reader should know

Even though this article isn't about specific plans, there are national program facts for 2027 that shape every choice you make:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027. Once your out-of-pocket spending on covered prescriptions hits this limit, you pay nothing more for covered drugs the rest of the year.
• Part D maximum deductible: $615 in 2026 and $700 in 2027. Plans can charge less, but not more.
• The coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone. As of 2025, Part D has three phases instead of four.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan. This optional program lets you spread your drug costs across the calendar year in monthly payments instead of paying at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA income thresholds. Higher-income beneficiaries pay a surcharge on Part B and Part D. For 2026, that starts above $109,000 for a single filer.

Enrollment dates to circle on your calendar

• Annual Enrollment Period (AEP): October 15 – December 7, 2026. This is when most people compare and switch plans for 2027.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period: January 1 – March 31. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one chance to switch to a different MA plan or drop back to Original Medicare.

Missing these windows usually means waiting a full year, so treat them like tax deadlines.

How to work through 70 plans without losing your mind

With 50 Medicare Advantage plans in Kane County for 2027, "just pick one" isn't a strategy. A few tips:

1. Write down your doctors, hospitals, and current prescriptions before you shop. 2. Use the official Plan Finder at medicare.gov — it lets you filter by your drugs and pharmacy. 3. Call your doctor's office to confirm which plans they'll be in for 2027 (networks change). 4. Ask for free, unbiased help from Illinois SHIP (the Senior Health Insurance Program).