2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D Star Ratings

Note: The information included in this Fact Sheet is based on the 2027 Medicare Advantage (MA) and Part D Star Ratings published on the Medicare Plan Finder on Oct. 8, 2026. For details on the methodology of the MA and Part D Star Ratings, please refer to the 2027 Part C & D Star Ratings Technical Notes available at http://go.cms.gov/partcanddstarratings.

Ensuring that Medicare works for seniors and people with disabilities and that people with Medicare have access to robust, stable, high-quality, and affordable options for the coverage they need are top priorities for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). CMS continues to implement enhancements to the Medicare Advantage (MA) and Medicare Part D Star Ratings programs to incentivize plans to strive for ongoing quality improvement and to help ensure that Medicare enrollees receive high-quality care.

CMS publishes the MA (Medicare Part C) and Part D Star Ratings each year to measure the quality of health and prescription drug services received by consumers enrolled in MA and Part D prescription drug plans (PDPs or Part D plans). An important component of the Star Ratings is to provide people with Medicare and their caregivers with meaningful information about the quality of plans in Medicare Plan Finder, alongside information about benefits and costs, to assist them in comparing Medicare health and drug plans and choosing the Medicare coverage option that best fits their health needs.

The 2027 Star Ratings announced today appear on Medicare Plan Finder for 2027 Open Enrollment, which begins on October 15, 2026 and runs through December 7, 2026, and will impact 2028 MA quality bonus payments.

Highlights of Contract Performance in 2027 Star Ratings

MA Prescription Drug (MA-PD) contracts are rated on up to 43 unique quality and performance measures; MA-only contracts (without Part D coverage) are rated on up to 32 measures; and standalone PDP contracts are rated on up to 13 measures. For each measure, CMS establishes thresholds called “cut points” that are used to determine whether each contract’s performance for that measure receives a one, two, three, four, or five-star rating.

Changes in the Methodology for the 2027 Star Ratings