Medicare Advantage

Oct. 15–Dec. 7: Medicare Star Ratings arrive in Scottsbluff

SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb. — With the fall Medicare Annual Enrollment Period running Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, a fresh round of Medicare Star Ratings is once again in the mix as western Nebraska residents sort through their coverage choices. The ratings, published each fall by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), are one of the few standardized ways to compare the quality of Medicare Advantage and Part D drug plans — but they can be easy to misread if you don't know what they actually measure.

Here's a plain-language guide to what Star Ratings are, what they aren't, and how to use them alongside the other 2027 Medicare changes.

What Star Ratings actually measure

Medicare Star Ratings are a quality score, not a price tag. CMS grades Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug plans on a scale from 1 star (poor) to 5 stars (excellent), and updates the scores every fall ahead of open enrollment.

The ratings pull from dozens of measures grouped into a few broad areas:

• Staying healthy — whether members get recommended screenings, vaccines, and check-ups.
• Managing chronic conditions — how well the plan supports people with diabetes, heart disease, and similar issues.
• Member experience — survey feedback on customer service, ease of getting care, and overall satisfaction.
• Member complaints and plan performance — how often members leave, file complaints, or have problems getting care.
• Customer service — call center performance, appeals handling, and access to information.

For stand-alone Part D drug plans, the measures focus more heavily on drug pricing accuracy, pharmacy customer service, and safe prescribing.

How and when the ratings are published

CMS releases the updated Star Ratings on the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov each October, just before the Annual Enrollment Period opens on Oct. 15. That timing is intentional — it gives beneficiaries a chance to see the latest quality scores while comparing plans for the coming year.

The ratings you see for 2027 plans are based on data CMS collected over the prior year or two, including member surveys, clinical performance data submitted by plans, and complaint records tracked by Medicare itself.

What Scottsbluff residents should keep in mind

Scottsbluff is in Scotts Bluff County, where Medicare Advantage and Part D plan availability is set at the county level. That means the mix of plans — and their individual Star Ratings — depends on where you live, not just the state you live in.

A few local realities worth remembering:

• Rural western Nebraska generally sees a different plan lineup than Omaha or Lincoln.
• Original Medicare (Parts A and B) is not rated with stars — the Star Ratings system applies only to Medicare Advantage and Part D.
• A plan's star score can change from year to year, so it's worth checking annually, even if you're happy with your current coverage.

The 2027 changes worth knowing alongside the ratings

Star Ratings aren't the only thing shifting this fall. Several program-level updates take effect Jan. 1, 2027:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027. Once you hit that in covered drug costs, you pay nothing more for the rest of the year on covered prescriptions.
• Part D maximum deductible: $615 in 2026 and $700 in 2027.
• The coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone as of 2025. Part D now has three phases instead of four.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan: An optional program that lets you spread your drug costs into monthly payments across the year, rather than paying large sums at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA surcharges — the higher premiums some higher-income beneficiaries pay for Parts B and D — start above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

These are program-wide rules set by CMS, so they apply the same way in Scottsbluff as they do anywhere else in the country.

How to use Star Ratings without letting them do all the work

Star Ratings are a useful starting point, but they're not a substitute for checking whether a plan fits your specific situation. Two people in the same ZIP code can have very different needs based on:

• Which doctors and specialists they see
• Which prescriptions they take and which pharmacies they use
• Whether they travel or spend part of the year outside Nebraska
• Whether they qualify for Extra Help or Medicaid

A five-star plan that doesn't cover your medications or include your doctor may not serve you as well as a four-star plan that does. That's why CMS encourages beneficiaries to look at ratings together with the plan's drug list, provider network, and total expected costs.