Central New York guide
Excellus Medicare Plan Cancellations for 2027: What Central New York Members Should Do
This page stays up for as long as people need it. It explains what an Excellus non-renewal notice means, the dates that matter, the rights the notice gives you, and how a licensed local agent compares your replacement options. Nothing here requires you to leave Excellus, and nothing here is affiliated with Excellus or Medicare.
Updated . Written for the 2027 plan year.
Why did Excellus cancel my Medicare plan?
Insurers can decide each year not to renew certain Medicare plans or to leave certain counties. If Excellus BlueCross BlueShield is not renewing your plan for 2027, it must mail you a written non-renewal notice by early October that names the plan and confirms your coverage ends on December 31, 2026.
Excellus serves 31 counties across Central New York, the Rochester area, the Southern Tier, the North Country, and the Mohawk Valley. Which plans are affected depends on where you live and which plan you have, so keep the letter handy for the call.
You are not losing Medicare. Your Part A and Part B continue. What ends is the Excellus plan that manages your benefits, and a plan that is not renewed gives you a guaranteed right to replace it, including Medicare Supplement plans with no health questions asked.
Counties Excellus serves: Broome, Cayuga, Chemung, Chenango, Clinton, Cortland, Delaware, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Livingston, Madison, Monroe, Montgomery, Oneida, Onondaga, Ontario, Oswego, Otsego, Schuyler, Seneca, St. Lawrence, Steuben, Tioga, Tompkins, Wayne, Yates.
Your timeline: when do you need to pick a new plan?
- By early October 2026: if your plan is not being renewed, the non-renewal letter arrives. Keep it; it names the plan that is ending.
- October 15 to December 7, 2026: Annual Enrollment Period. Enroll in any plan available in your county for coverage starting January 1, 2027.
- December 31, 2026: the terminated plan ends at midnight.
- December 8, 2026 through the last day of February 2027: the non-renewal Special Enrollment Period, in case you miss December 7.
- Up to 63 days after your plan ends: the federal guaranteed-issue window for a Medicare Supplement. New York allows Medicare Supplement enrollment year-round without health questions.
What your non-renewal letter should say
Medicare requires a plan that is leaving to notify its members in writing before the Annual Enrollment Period begins. The letter names the plan that is ending, gives the date coverage stops (December 31, 2026), explains your Special Enrollment rights, and lists ways to get help. It is not a bill, and it does not ask you to do anything that day. Read it once, keep it where you can find it, and have it with you for the call.
Three ways to replace an Excellus Medicare plan
- Another Medicare Advantage plan. Other insurers offer Medicare Advantage plans in the counties Excellus serves, and some counties may still have Excellus plans that are continuing. Networks, drug lists, and out-of-pocket limits differ, so the comparison is worth doing plan by plan.
- Original Medicare with a Medicare Supplement (Medigap) plan and a standalone Part D drug plan. This combination works with any doctor or hospital in the country that accepts Medicare, and New York lets you buy a Medigap plan at any time of year without health questions.
- Original Medicare alone with a standalone Part D plan. Fewer moving parts, but no cap on your share of hospital and doctor costs, which is why most people add a Supplement or choose an Advantage plan instead.
How to keep your current doctors in Syracuse, Utica, Rochester, and Binghamton
Medicare Advantage plans use provider networks, and the networks in Central New York are built around a handful of hospital systems: Upstate University Hospital, Crouse Health, and St. Joseph's Health in Syracuse; Mohawk Valley Health System in Utica; Rochester Regional Health and UR Medicine in the Rochester area; UHS in Binghamton; Samaritan Health in Watertown; and Cayuga Health in Ithaca. A plan that includes your primary doctor can still leave out the specialist or hospital you rely on, so we check every name you give us against every plan you are considering, not just the one that looks cheapest.
If keeping every doctor matters more than anything else, Original Medicare with a Medicare Supplement removes the network question entirely.
What to have ready for the call
- Your Excellus non-renewal letter, or at least the name of your current plan.
- Your red, white, and blue Medicare card.
- A list of your doctors and the hospital you prefer.
- Your prescriptions with dosages, and the pharmacy you use.
- A rough idea of what you paid out of pocket this year.