Memorial Hermann ends its Medicare Advantage plan for 2027 as health systems pull back

Houston-based Memorial Hermann Health System is ending its Medicare Advantage plan at the end of 2026. The coverage will not be available for the 2027 plan year, Newsweek reported Thursday ¹. Medicare Advantage is the private-insurance alternative to Original Medicare.

Memorial Hermann Health Plan offered Medicare Advantage in six Texas counties in 2026 ¹. A separate trade report says the withdrawal covers six Houston-area counties. It says members who chose the plan for its tie to Memorial Hermann hospitals and doctors could lose access to physicians they have seen for years ².

Part of a bigger pullback

Federal data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) show 18 plans leaving Medicare Advantage for 2027. Ten of them are insurers affiliated with health systems ¹. Another Texas system, CHRISTUS Health Plan, is also leaving. In 2026 it offered plans in 36 Texas counties and eight New Mexico counties ¹.

Other exits are in New Jersey, Idaho, Wisconsin, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and California, among other places ¹. Memorial Hermann had already announced it was shutting its commercial insurance business ¹.

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A second kind of retreat is happening as well. Some hospital systems are staying in Medicare Advantage but ending network contracts with insurers such as UnitedHealthcare, Humana, Aetna and Anthem. Becker's Hospital Review has tracked 35 health system contract breaks effective or announced in 2026 ¹.

Experts told Newsweek that hospitals in these disputes often point to two problems: denials of prior authorization, which is an insurer's advance approval for care, and slow payment ¹. Medicare Advantage now covers more than half of eligible Medicare beneficiaries ¹.

What members face

Seniors in affected plans face two questions for 2027. Will their plan still exist, and will their preferred hospital still accept it ¹? Open enrollment runs Oct. 15 to Dec. 7, 2026, and new coverage starts Jan. 1 ².

Members who do not choose a new plan are generally placed in Original Medicare ¹². Finance expert Michael Ryan said that means no drug plan, no cap on out-of-pocket costs and no Medigap unless the member acts ¹. Medigap is supplemental insurance that helps pay costs Original Medicare leaves behind.

Don't be the member who ignores the letter,

Newsweek also quoted an academic who said lawmakers could face growing pressure over the pullbacks ¹.

As more insurers reconsider their participation in Medicare Advantage, policymakers will face increasing pressure to balance financial accountability with protecting beneficiaries, while seniors will need to become more proactive in reviewing their coverage,

The wire copy does not include comment from Memorial Hermann or from members of Congress. It also does not say how many people are enrolled in the plan ¹.

That matters because the exits are landing days before the Nov. 3 midterm election. Republicans control the House, the Senate and the White House. Each plan that leaves reduces the choices seniors were told Advantage would provide.

The Record

1. Jan 1, 2026Memorial Hermann Health Plan offered Medicare Advantage in six Texas counties during the 2026 plan year ¹.
2. Oct 15, 2026Medicare open enrollment began for 2027 coverage and runs through Dec. 7 ².
3. Oct 29, 2026Newsweek reported Memorial Hermann is ending its Medicare Advantage plan at the end of 2026, one of 18 exits for 2027 ¹.

Sources

1. Newsweek, “Another Major Texas Health System Drops Medicare Advantage Plan: Full List” (2026-10-29). newsweek.com/another-major-texas-health-system-drops-medicar
2. Live Insurance News, “Texas Medicare Advantage 2027” (2026-10-03). liveinsurancenews.com/texas-medicare-advantage-2027/8576579/

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