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Sharp Medicare Advantage 2027: Individual Plans End December 31

Reviewed by Russell Noga, Licensed Medicare Insurance Broker (all 50 states) — Last updated November 1, 2026

Sharp Health Plan will stop selling individual Medicare Advantage plans on January 1, 2027. If you bought a Sharp Direct Advantage plan on your own, your coverage ends December 31, 2026, and you need to pick new coverage for 2027. Sharp’s employer group retiree plans continue, and Sharp HealthCare hospitals and doctors are not leaving Medicare.

Sharp confirmed the decision on October 5, 2026, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. This page lays out what ends, what stays, which 2027 plans still route you to Sharp doctors, and the dates that matter. It uses our own count of CMS’s 2027 plan files for San Diego County so you can see how many choices you actually have.

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Compare 2027 San Diego Medicare Advantage Plans

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Sharp Medicare Advantage 2027: 0 individual Sharp plans, 85 San Diego County plans from 17 insurers, 5 co-branded UHC Sharp plans, enroll by December 7

What Ends and What Stays

Coverage 2027 status What it means for you
Sharp Direct Advantage individual plans Ending December 31, 2026 Choose a new plan by December 7, 2026 for a January 1 start, or use the special enrollment period below
Sharp employer group retiree plans (CalPERS, SDPEBA, Teamsters, San Diego Electrical Health & Welfare Trust, Sharp HealthCare retirees) Continuing No action needed because of this change; watch for your group’s own 2027 notice
Sharp HealthCare hospitals and doctors with Original Medicare Continuing You can keep seeing Sharp doctors who accept Medicare
Sharp HealthCare with individual UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans Accepted for 2027, per Sharp The main individual Medicare Advantage route Sharp names for 2027

Source: Sharp HealthCare, “Sharp Health Plan’s Medicare Advantage changes for 2027”; The Money Overview, Oct. 7, 2026.

Sharp HealthCare CEO Chris Howard pointed to reimbursement pressure, rising health care costs and regulatory changes as the reasons individual plans became financially unsustainable. “This change does not mean Sharp HealthCare is leaving Medicare,” he said in Sharp’s announcement. Sharp runs five acute-care hospitals, five specialty hospitals and three affiliated medical groups in San Diego County.

Our Analysis: What Sharp Filed With CMS for 2027

We checked Sharp Health Plan’s 2027 filings in the CMS Plan Benefit Package files. The contract Sharp uses (H5386) lists only employer group plans for 2027. There is no individual Sharp plan anywhere in the 2027 files, which matches the announcement.

Our analysis of CMS 2027 plan data

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Sharp Health Plan, individual plans for 2027: 0. All three of its 2027 filings (Sharp Direct Advantage Calendar Year, Non-Calendar Year and MA Only) are employer group plans.

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San Diego County, 2027: 85 individual Medicare Advantage plans from 17 insurer brands. 46 are standard plans open to anyone with Medicare; 39 are special needs plans.

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Plan types in the county: 66 HMOs (78%), 14 HMO-POS plans (16%) and only 5 PPOs (6%). Four of the five PPOs are from Humana and Alignment Health; the fifth is a kidney-disease special needs plan.

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Co-branded “UHC Sharp” plans: 5 of UnitedHealthcare’s 9 San Diego plans carry the Sharp name for 2027.

The low PPO count matters if you were counting on out-of-network coverage. In San Diego County, almost every option is an HMO or HMO-POS, so the plan’s network decides which doctors you can use.

San Diego County 2027 Medicare Advantage plans by insurer: Alignment Health 15, UnitedHealthcare 9, Champion 9, SCAN 8, Humana 6, Clever Care 6, Blue Shield of California 5, Sharp Health Plan 0

2027 Plans That Carry the Sharp Name

Sharp says it will accept individual UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans in 2027. In the CMS files, UnitedHealthcare has five San Diego County plans with Sharp in the plan name:

Plan name (2027) Type Who can join
UHC Sharp Medicare Advantage CA-001P HMO-POS Anyone with Parts A and B in the service area
UHC Sharp Medicare Advantage ValueRx CA-12P HMO-POS Anyone with Parts A and B in the service area
UHC Sharp Medicare Advantage CA-026P HMO-POS Anyone with Parts A and B in the service area
UHC Sharp Complete Care CA-15P HMO-POS C-SNP People with a qualifying chronic condition
UHC Sharp Complete Care Support CA-6AP HMO C-SNP People with a qualifying chronic condition

Source: our analysis of CMS 2027 Plan Benefit Package and plan-county files. Premiums and copays vary; check each plan’s 2027 Summary of Benefits.

A Sharp name on the plan doesn’t guarantee that every Sharp doctor is in it. Networks can differ by medical group, so check that your own primary care doctor and specialists are listed in the 2027 directory for the exact plan. Other insurers in the county, including Alignment Health, SCAN, Humana, Blue Shield of California, Aetna and Kaiser Permanente, run their own networks.

Compare 2027 San Diego Medicare Advantage Plans

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Your Deadlines and Enrollment Options

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By December 7, 2026: Annual Enrollment runs October 15 through December 7. Pick a new plan in this window and it starts January 1, 2027, with no gap.

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December 8, 2026 through February 28, 2027: Because your plan is not renewing, Medicare gives you a special enrollment period to join another Medicare Advantage or drug plan. Coverage starts the first of the month after you enroll, so waiting can leave you without drug coverage for a month or more.

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If you do nothing: you go back to Original Medicare on January 1 without built-in drug coverage. Joining a Part D plan late can also add a lifetime late-enrollment penalty if you go 63 days or more without creditable drug coverage.

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If you get coverage through a Sharp retiree group: this change doesn’t end your plan. Your group sends its own 2027 materials.

Worried about a gap in your prescriptions?

Enroll in your 2027 plan before December 7, 2026. Your new plan then starts January 1, the same day Sharp coverage ends, and your pharmacy can bill it from the first refill of the year.

How to Replace Your Sharp Plan, Step by Step

1

List your doctors and their medical group. Plan networks in San Diego are often built around medical groups, so the group name helps you check a directory quickly.

2

List every prescription and dose, plus your preferred pharmacy.

3

Start with the five UHC Sharp plans if staying with Sharp doctors is your top goal, then compare at least two plans from other insurers for cost.

4

Check each plan’s 2027 provider directory and drug list, and call the doctor’s office to confirm the exact plan name for 2027.

5

Compare total yearly cost, not just the premium: copays, the drug deductible and the plan’s out-of-pocket maximum.

6

Enroll by December 7, 2026, and keep your confirmation number. See our California Medicare Advantage guide for statewide options and other plans ending in 2027.

Compare 2027 San Diego Medicare Advantage Plans

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Sharp Medicare Advantage 2027 — Frequently Asked Questions

➤ Is Sharp Medicare Advantage ending in 2027?

Yes, for individual plans. Sharp Health Plan stops offering individual Medicare Advantage plans on January 1, 2027. Employer group retiree plans continue.

➤ Can I still see Sharp doctors in 2027?

Yes. Sharp HealthCare accepts Original Medicare and, per Sharp, individual UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans in 2027. Confirm your specific doctor is in the plan you choose.

➤ Which 2027 plans have Sharp in the name?

UnitedHealthcare files five San Diego County plans named UHC Sharp for 2027: three HMO-POS plans open to anyone and two chronic-condition special needs plans.

➤ Is my CalPERS Sharp plan ending?

No. Sharp says its employer group retiree plans, including CalPERS, SDPEBA and Teamsters, continue in 2027.

➤ What happens if I don’t choose a new plan?

You return to Original Medicare on January 1, 2027, without drug coverage. You can still join a plan through February 28, 2027 under a special enrollment period.

➤ How many Medicare Advantage plans are in San Diego County for 2027?

Our count of CMS 2027 files shows 85 individual plans from 17 insurer brands, 46 of them standard plans open to everyone with Medicare.

➤ Are there PPO plans in San Diego County for 2027?

Very few. Only 5 of the county’s 85 plans are PPOs, so most options require you to use the plan’s network.

➤ Why is Sharp dropping its Medicare Advantage plans?

Sharp cited reimbursement pressure, rising health care costs and regulatory changes that made individual plans financially unsustainable.

New to Medicare?

If you are new to Medicare, then you can enroll in a 2027 Medicare Advantage plan up to three months prior to your Medicare Part B effective date.

Call one of our licensed insurance agents to see what the best time frame is for you to enroll, based on your current situation. You can contact them at 1-855-454-9051 (TTY 711), Mon–Fri 8am–9pm EST.

Have Questions?

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