Almost 35.5 million people were enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan as of Feb. 1, up about 3% from 34.4 million at the same time last year, according to CMS data analyzed by Becker’s. Growth during the annual enrollment period (Oct. 15 to Dec. 7) was more modest, with enrollment increasing about 1%.
Seven things to know:
1. For 2026, 23% of MA enrollees have special needs coverage, with the segment growing by 883,000 year-over-year, or 12.2%.
2. Humana added more than 1.2 million MA members during the annual enrollment period, growing 21% from December to February to reach 7.04 million.
3. UnitedHealthcare dropped from 10.3 million in December to 9.4 million in February, a decline of about 915,000, or 9%. The company previously said it expects to lose up to 1.4 million MA members this year.
4. Elevance Health’s MA membership dropped from 2.2 million in December to 1.9 million in February, a 14% decline.
5. Aetna dropped 94,000 members (2%) to 4.1 million. HCSC, which absorbed Cigna’s Medicare business in 2025, shed about 10% of its members during annual enrollment, ending at 881,000. BCBS Michigan membership declined by 15%, dropping 117,000 members to a total of 679,000.
6. Smaller plans drove a lot of the growth. Devoted Health more than doubled during annual enrollment, adding 257,000 members (121%) to reach 468,000 total. SCAN Group grew 37% (+116,000) to reach 432,000 total. BCBS Minnesota added 80,000 (31%) to reach 337,000 total. Clover Health added 41,000 (36%) to reach 154,000 total. Alignment Healthcare grew 18% to 277,000 total.
7. Total SNP enrollment reached roughly 8.2 million as of February. Dual-eligible SNPs remain the largest category at 6.4 million, followed by chronic condition SNPs at 1.6 million and institutional SNPs at about 129,000.
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