Medicare Advantage

Cranston's Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: What You Can Change by March 31

Providence County has 22 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 1 plans are not coming back, 0 are new, and 12 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 4 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Cranston, not which plan to pick.

CRANSTON, R.I. — If you signed up for a Medicare Advantage plan during the fall Annual Enrollment Period and are already having second thoughts, you are not stuck. The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period runs from January 1 through March 31 each year, and it gives Cranston residents one more chance to adjust their coverage before it locks in for the rest of the year.

Cranston Enters the Medicare Advantage "Second Chance" Window

This window is narrower than the fall enrollment period, and the rules are different. Here is what you can — and cannot — do during it, and how it fits with the bigger 2027 Medicare picture.

What This Enrollment Period Is (and Isn't)

The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period, sometimes called MA-OEP, is only for people who are already enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan on January 1. If that is you, between January 1 and March 31 you can:

• Switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan (with or without drug coverage).
• Drop your Medicare Advantage plan and go back to Original Medicare (Parts A and B).
• If you drop back to Original Medicare, you can also join a stand-alone Part D drug plan.

You can only make one change during this period, and the new coverage starts the first of the month after the plan gets your request.

What you cannot do during MA-OEP:

• You cannot switch from Original Medicare to a Medicare Advantage plan for the first time.
• You cannot join a stand-alone Part D plan if you are staying on Original Medicare and did not have one before.
• You cannot switch from one stand-alone Part D plan to another if you are on Original Medicare.

Those moves had to happen during the fall Annual Enrollment Period (October 15 – December 7).

Why Cranston Residents Might Use It

Cranston is in Providence County, where residents typically have a wide range of Medicare Advantage plans and carriers to choose from. That variety is helpful in October, but it can also mean that once coverage starts in January, some people realize the plan they picked is not the right fit.

Common reasons Rhode Islanders revisit their choice in the new year:

• A doctor or hospital in the Cranston area turns out to be out-of-network.
• A prescription they take is not covered the way they expected, or requires prior authorization.
• Referral rules or plan type (HMO vs. PPO) are more restrictive than they realized.
• Their health situation changed, and they need different benefits or more flexibility.

If any of that sounds familiar, MA-OEP is your window.

The 2027 Backdrop: What Has Changed at the Program Level

Even if you are happy with your Medicare Advantage plan, it is worth knowing what is new in 2027 across the whole Medicare program:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: Your yearly out-of-pocket spending on covered prescription drugs is capped at $2,100 in 2026.
• Part D deductible: The maximum allowable deductible for a Part D plan is $615 in 2026.
• No more "donut hole": As of 2025, the coverage gap phase is gone. Part D now has three phases instead of four.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan: You can choose to spread your yearly drug costs into monthly payments instead of paying at the pharmacy counter. It is optional and free to join.
• IRMAA: Higher-income beneficiaries pay extra for Part B and Part D. In 2026, those surcharges begin above $109,000 in income for a single filer.

These rules apply whether you are in Original Medicare or a Medicare Advantage plan with drug coverage.

How to Make a Smart Change — Not a Rushed One

Before you switch or drop a plan between January and March, take a few practical steps:

1. Read the letter your plan sent you last fall (the Annual Notice of Change). It explains what is different this year. 2. List your doctors, hospitals, and prescriptions. Check them against any plan you are considering. 3. Use the Plan Finder at medicare.gov to compare options in Providence County. 4. Call your plan if you think a covered service was denied in error — sometimes the fix is an appeal, not a switch. 5. Talk to a neutral counselor before you commit. Rhode Island's SHIP program, called SHIP-RI, offers free, unbiased help.

Star Ratings — the 1-to-5 scores CMS publishes each fall — can be one piece of information you look at, but they are not the whole story. Your own doctors, drugs, and budget matter more.