Medicare Advantage Plan Discontinued in Stevens County

Stevens County is old by Washington standards. OFM counted 13,669 residents age 65 and older in 2025, 28.6% of the county, against roughly 20% in neighboring Spokane County. That makes a Medicare plan ending a bigger deal here than the private-plan numbers alone would suggest.

Stevens County Medicare at a glance

People with Medicare (CMS counts, July 2026): 14,719
In Medicare Advantage and other health plans: 5,316 (36.1%; Washington: 49.7%)
In Original Medicare: 9,403 (63.9%)
Dual-eligible, Medicare plus Apple Health: 2,375 (16.1%): 1,223 full benefits, 1,152 partial
On Medicare because of a disability: 1,404 (9.5%)
Enrolled in any Part D drug plan: 10,962: 6,034 stand-alone, 4,928 inside a private health plan
Population (OFM, April 1, 2026) and land area: 48,025 people over about 2,477 square miles, roughly 19 per square mile

Sources: CMS Medicare Monthly Enrollment, July 2026; WA OFM April 1, 2026; WA OFM age data, 2025; Census Gazetteer 2025. Shares and density computed.

About a third of Stevens County's Medicare population is in a private plan. If yours is the one leaving, notice where your neighbors are: most use Original Medicare, and more of the county's Part D enrollees buy a stand-alone drug plan than get drugs through a private health plan. Neither fact tells you what to pick. They do tell you that the Original Medicare route is the common one here, not an odd request.

One more figure worth a pause. Subtract the 10,962 Part D enrollees from the 14,719 people with Medicare and about 3,757 residents, a quarter of the total, aren't in a Part D plan. Some of them have other drug coverage that counts, from the VA or a former employer, for example. But if you're leaving a Medicare Advantage plan and moving to Original Medicare, don't let yourself drift into that group by accident.

Drug coverage and money: where Stevens County should focus

When a Medicare Advantage plan ends, its drug coverage ends the same day, December 31, 2026. If you don't pick anything, Medicare moves you to Original Medicare on January 1 and no drug plan comes with it. Medicare can then charge a late enrollment penalty if you go 63 or more consecutive days without creditable drug coverage. For 2027 it's 1% of $41.33 (the national base beneficiary premium) for every full month without coverage, and it sticks to your premium for as long as you have Part D.

That penalty doesn't apply to people with Extra Help, and Stevens County has a lot of people who may qualify for it. The 1,152 partial duals have Apple Health that helps with Medicare costs rather than full benefits. That kind of help usually comes through a Medicare Savings Program, and anyone in one qualifies for Extra Help automatically. If you get Extra Help and your plan ends, CMS reassigns you to a stand-alone Part D plan unless you already have one for 2027, and you can switch drug plans once a month after that.

If money is tight and you aren't enrolled, apply for a Medicare Savings Program now. HCA says there's no asset test. Apply online at washingtonconnection.org, on paper, or at a DSHS office. Approval takes time, so don't wait for December.

A month-by-month plan

Late October. Find the plan letter and the envelope; keep both, because a Medigap insurer can ask for proof of when your plan ended. Write down your doctors, your pharmacy and each drug with its dose.

November. Compare both directions on Medicare Plan Finder: another Medicare Advantage plan where you live, or Original Medicare with a stand-alone Part D plan and, if you want one, a Medigap policy. Washington's RCW 48.66.055 gives you guaranteed issue for a Medigap policy because your plan is leaving, but only if you take the Original Medicare route. People first eligible before 2020 can pick from Plans A through F (high-deductible F included), K or L; those eligible January 1, 2020 or later from A, B, D, G (high-deductible G included), K or L. OIC advises applying on or after November 1.

By December 7. Medicare's fall Open Enrollment ends. Changes made by now start January 1.

December 8 to 31. Your special enrollment period for a discontinued plan begins. Anything you sign up for by December 31 still takes effect January 1. Aim for this.

January and February 2027. The special period stays open through February 28. A January enrollment starts February 1 and a February enrollment starts March 1, which leaves a month or two uncovered.

March 4, 2027. The Medigap guaranteed issue right ends, 63 days after December 31.

For the reasoning behind each date, see the Washington guide for a discontinued Medicare plan.

Two small hospitals, a border and a lot of road

The state and federal hospital lists show two hospitals in Stevens County: one in Chewelah and one in Colville, the county seat. Both are critical access hospitals, which the Department of Health describes as small rural hospitals with fewer than 25 beds; Washington has 39. Stevens County touches the Canadian border to the north and borders Ferry, Pend Oreille, Lincoln and Spokane counties in Washington. Its history runs through the Columbia River: the state's county profile notes that Native people gathered by the thousands at Kettle Falls to harvest salmon each summer, and the falls now lie under Roosevelt Lake, created by Grand Coulee Dam.

What that means for your choice: write down every provider you use, including any specialists outside the county. A Medicare Advantage plan may require network providers for care that isn't an emergency, so check every name in the 2027 directory. Original Medicare lets you see any provider in the U.S. that accepts Medicare, though by itself it has no annual limit on your share of costs.

The 1,404 residents on Medicare because of a disability face one more wrinkle. Under 65, Medigap is harder to get: federal law generally doesn't require insurers to sell to that age group, and OIC says options are more limited. Call SHIBA before you leave a private plan counting on a supplement.

Local help in Stevens County

SHIBA through Rural Resources Community Action, 956 South Main, Suite A, Colville: 509-684-8421, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays. When we checked OIC's local SHIBA listings on October 26, 2026, this office showed "Currently not accepting appointments. For assistance, call Medicare at 1-800-633-4227."
Statewide SHIBA: 800-562-6900, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Community Living Connections is also run locally by Rural Resources (509-684-8421). The Area Agency on Aging for the county is Aging and Long Term Care of Eastern Washington in Spokane.
Rides. Rural Resources runs Dial-A-Ride in Stevens, Pend Oreille and Ferry counties for people with disabilities, people too old or young to drive, and people with low incomes, plus volunteer drivers mainly for medical and social service appointments, often to larger communities. Its commuter bus connects Kettle Falls, Colville and Chewelah for 50 cents a ride. Reservations: 1-800-776-9026.
Medicare: 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), TTY 1-877-486-2048, around the clock except some federal holidays.

Federal Medicare rules and Washington law are what this page summarizes, and the notice from your plan governs your specific dates; check your own case with SHIBA, a licensed agent or 1-800-MEDICARE before changing coverage.

Questions from Stevens County

How many Stevens County residents are in Medicare Advantage and other health plans?

In July 2026, CMS counted 5,316 of the county's 14,719 Medicare beneficiaries (36.1%) in Medicare Advantage and other health plans. That category also includes cost plans and PACE. Statewide the share was 49.7%.

Is the SHIBA office in Colville taking appointments?

On October 26, 2026, OIC's listing for Rural Resources Community Action in Colville said it was not accepting appointments and referred people to 1-800-MEDICARE. SHIBA's statewide line, 800-562-6900, was still listed.

I get help paying my Medicare premiums. What happens to my drug coverage when my plan ends?

If you are in a Medicare Savings Program you automatically qualify for Extra Help, and CMS reassigns Extra Help members to a stand-alone Part D plan when their Medicare Advantage plan ends, unless they already have Part D for 2027. You also won't owe a late enrollment penalty.

Can I get a ride to a medical appointment in Stevens County?

Rural Resources offers Dial-A-Ride for people with special needs and volunteer drivers, mainly for medical and social service appointments. Call 1-800-776-9026 to reserve.

Medicare Advantage plan discontinued in Stevens County: a month-by-month plan