How do you add counties, drop counties, or exit — and what do you owe your members?
Expansion runs on the standard application cycle: a NOIA and a service area expansion application in January or February, then a bid by the first Monday in June. Reduction and non-renewal run on the same June clock for CMS notification, but your members must receive notice by October 1 — at least 90 days before the effective date.
Affected members then get a Special Enrollment Period from December 8 through the end of February.
What this stage actually is
The reminder that there is no steady state. Every plan re-bids every year, and the decision to grow or shrink has to be made in the winter for a change that takes effect the following January.
What you must do
- To expand: file a NOIA and a service area expansion application on the January/February cycle.
- To expand: demonstrate network adequacy in the new counties — the same test as your original application.
- To expand: bid for the expanded service area by the first Monday in June.
- To reduce or non-renew: notify CMS by the applicable deadline — non-renewal notice to CMS is due by the first Monday in June, aligned to the bid deadline.
- To reduce or non-renew: notify affected enrollees using the CMS model notices, received by October 1, describing their options.
Key dates
| What | When | Date status |
|---|---|---|
| Service area expansion application | ~Feb | projected |
| Non-renewal / SAR notice to CMS | First Monday in June | statutory pattern |
| Enrollee notice received | By Oct 1 (≥ 90 days before effective) | statutory |
| SAR / non-renewal Special Enrollment Period | Dec 8 – end of February | statutory |
About the dates on this page. CY2027 dates are published CMS facts. CY2028 dates marked statutory are fixed by regulation. Dates marked projected are the pattern from the CY2026 and CY2027 cycles — CMS has not published them yet, and we relabel them the day it does. How we label data and dates →
CMS forms, systems and references
- Non-Renewal and Service Area Reduction guidance and enrollee notification models
- The NR/SAR module in HPMS
- Medicare Managed Care Manual, Chapter 11
- MA and Part D enrollment and disenrollment guidance
Common mistakes
- Missing the June CMS notification and being bound to another year in a county you meant to exit.
- Late or non-model enrollee notices — an enforcement and reputational risk with no upside.
- Expanding on penetration alone without testing network feasibility or incumbent star strength.
Tips for success
- Make the expand-or-reduce decision by early spring. Both paths have February or June dependencies.
- Model the regional consequence of a county exit. Broker trust is regional, not county-scoped.
- Watch competitors’ reductions closely — their affected members are the most contestable population in your market, and the Special Enrollment Period hands you a December-to-February selling window outside AEP.
The data you need for this stage
- Plan benchmarking — exits and member migration: where members actually went
- Sales intelligence — whitespace and contestable-member views
- Compare markets — expansion candidate screening
So what / Now what
Exits are the largest source of contestable members in Medicare Advantage, and they are announced on a public schedule. Whether you are the one exiting or the one absorbing, the calendar is the same and it starts in June.
- Diarise the first Monday in June as a decision date, not a filing date.
- Track competitor exits and where their members went in Plan benchmarking.
- Screen expansion candidates in Compare markets before the February application window.
Provenance — sources and date status
- Source files
- Medicare Managed Care Manual, Chapter 11; CY2027 MA and Part D Final Rule; CY2027 Rate Announcement; CY2027 Part D Bidding Instructions
- Vintage
- CY2027 cycle published; CY2028 cycle not yet posted by CMS
- Last updated
- July 24, 2026
- Refresh cadence
- At each CMS cycle milestone (application posting, Advance Notice, Rate Announcement, final rule)
- Method
- CY2027 dates are transcribed from CMS materials. CY2028 dates are either statutory (bid = first Monday in June; Rate Announcement = first Monday in April; ANOC receipt = Sep 30; marketing start = Oct 1; AEP = Oct 15–Dec 7) or projected from the CY2026 and CY2027 cycle pattern.
- Known limitations
- Projected dates are not CMS commitments and must be confirmed against the CMS application page and HPMS memos when the CY2028 cycle opens. Network adequacy standards and application procedures change between cycles — verify current-cycle instructions rather than reusing prior-year guidance.
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