Every September, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services publishes one fact sheet per state with the same handful of figures for the coming year: how many plans, the average premium, the cheapest drug plan, how many people get help with drug costs. Fifty-six sheets came out on September 28, 2026, for the 50 states, the District of Columbia and five territories. Nobody lines them up. We did, so that a New Yorker choosing a plan this fall can see which numbers are ordinary and which are not.
Two numbers stand out for New York, one that hurts and one that explains a lot. The cheapest stand-alone drug plan here costs about seven times what it costs in most states. And a larger share of New Yorkers in those plans get federal help with drug costs than in any other state.
The Part D price floor: New York’s cheapest plan costs the most
A stand-alone Part D plan is the drug coverage you add to Original Medicare. The fact sheets report the lowest monthly premium among those plans in each state. In 2027 that floor is the same, $5.30, in 44 states and DC. Five states sit higher. New York sits far higher.
Put in yearly terms, the gap is concrete. The cheapest plan in New York costs $447.60 for 2027. The cheapest plan in most states costs $63.60. The difference, $384 a year, comes before a single prescription is filled. Against the four New England states that share a $13.30 floor, New York’s cheapest plan still costs $288 more a year.
The floor is the cheapest plan, not the typical one. Most people pay more than the floor, in New York and everywhere else, because the cheapest plan rarely covers every drug at every pharmacy they use. The fact sheet does not explain why New York’s floor is so high, and we will not guess. What it does show is the other side of the same coin.
Every New Yorker in a stand-alone plan can find a lower premium for 2027. CMS reports that 100% of people in a stand-alone drug plan in New York have access to a 2027 plan with a lower premium than the one they paid in 2026. That is true in only 26 of the 51 jurisdictions; in Wisconsin it is 34%. In New York, staying in the same plan without comparing is the expensive choice.
Extra Help: a larger share of New Yorkers get it than in any other state
Extra Help, the federal Low Income Subsidy, cuts Part D costs to a $0 premium and low fixed copays for people who qualify. CMS reports what share of stand-alone Part D enrollees in each state receive it.
New York’s share, 37.43%, is the highest of the 50 states and well above the median of 22.74%. Part of the reason is a state rule that most states do not have: in New York, enrolling in a Medicare Savings Program automatically qualifies you for Extra Help, even if your savings are above Extra Help’s own limit. New York’s savings programs have no asset test and reach 186% of the federal poverty level, which for 2026 is $2,474 a month for one person. How the savings programs work.
This also changes how to read the $37.30 floor. For a New Yorker with Extra Help, the premium on many plans is $0 and the copays are fixed by law. Those copays rise for 2027:
| Extra Help copays, per prescription | 2025 | 2026 | 2027 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Income up to 150% FPL: generic drugs | $4.90 | $5.10 | $5.80 |
| Income up to 150% FPL: other drugs | $12.15 | $12.65 | $14.40 |
| Medicaid members up to 100% FPL: generic drugs | $1.60 | $1.60 | $1.65 |
| Medicaid members up to 100% FPL: other drugs | $4.80 | $4.90 | $5.00 |
| Deductible with the full subsidy | $0 | $0 | $0 |
Source: CMS Part D benefit parameters in the 2026 and 2027 rate announcements. “Medicaid members” here means people with full Medicaid and Medicare who live in the community.
New York adds a third layer that no fact sheet counts. EPIC, the state’s Elderly Pharmaceutical Insurance Coverage program for residents 65 and older, caps your Part D copay at $20 per drug and helps pay the Part D premium at incomes up to $23,000 single or $29,000 for a couple. It applies in any month, with income limits that reach $75,000 single and $100,000 for a couple. How EPIC works.
Medicare Advantage: more plans, a lower average premium, still above most states
A Medicare Advantage plan is a private plan that delivers Parts A and B, usually with drug coverage built in. New York has one of the largest Advantage markets in the country.
New York’s 227 plans for 2027 compare with 218 in 2026, nine more. CMS reports that 100% of New Yorkers with Medicare have access to an Advantage plan with a $0 monthly premium.
The average premium tells a different story from the plan count.
The average monthly Advantage premium in New York falls from $36.19 in 2026 to $30.79 in 2027, a drop of $5.40, or about 15%. Averages fell in 31 of the 50 jurisdictions with Advantage data, and New York’s drop was the eighth largest. In 2026 New York was tied with Massachusetts for sixth highest; in 2027 it ranks ninth. The median state’s average is $12.93.
A $0 premium is not a $0 plan. Advantage plans charge copays and coinsurance, use networks and usually require prior authorization. The difference people feel is whether their doctors and hospitals are in the network and who decides whether a service is approved. The full comparison with Original Medicare.
What changed in Part D for everyone
Two national numbers rise for 2027, and they apply to every Part D plan in New York, stand-alone or inside an Advantage plan.
See the numbers as a table
| Year | Out-of-pocket cap |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $2,000 |
| 2026 | $2,100 |
| 2027 | $2,400 |
Source: CMS rate announcements for 2026 and 2027, Part D benefit parameters
See the numbers as a table
| Year | Maximum deductible |
|---|---|
| 2025 | $590 |
| 2026 | $615 |
| 2027 | $700 |
Source: CMS rate announcements for 2026 and 2027, Part D benefit parameters
The out-of-pocket cap rises from $2,100 to $2,400, 14% in a year and 20% since 2025. Once you reach it, covered drugs cost nothing for the rest of the year. The largest deductible a plan may charge rises from $615 to $700. Plans may charge less, and many do, which is one more line to compare.
New York and its neighbors
| 2027 | New York | New Jersey | Connecticut | Pennsylvania | Massachusetts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lowest stand-alone Part D premium | $37.30 | $5.30 | $13.30 | $5.30 | $13.30 |
| Stand-alone Part D plans | 9 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 10 |
| Average Advantage premium | $30.79 | $20.09 | $25.31 | $20.07 | $37.80 |
| Advantage plans | 227 | 72 | 48 | 338 | 97 |
| Part D enrollees with Extra Help | 37.43% | 19.42% | 32.38% | 22.01% | 32.08% |
Source: CMS 2027 state fact sheets. Coverage follows where you live, not where you work: a New Jersey plan is not open to a New York resident.
What the numbers mean for you
- If you have a stand-alone drug plan, compare plans before December 7, 2026. Every New Yorker in one can find a lower 2027 premium, and the cheapest plan is not automatically the cheapest for your drugs. Enter your prescriptions and pharmacy in the Medicare Plan Finder.
- If your income is under about $2,474 a month (one person, 2026), apply for a Medicare Savings Program through HRA. It pays the Part B premium and brings Extra Help with it. New York checks no assets.
- If you are 65 or older, look at EPIC whatever your plan. It caps copays at $20 per drug and can be added in any month.
- If you are in an Advantage plan, read your Annual Notice of Change for the network, the drug list and the premium. A $0 premium plan can still cost more in copays.
- If you want to go back to Original Medicare, New York requires insurers to sell you a supplement in any month, regardless of health, at a community rate. That makes leaving an Advantage plan far less risky here than in most states.
- If you want help, call HIICAP, New York’s free Medicare counseling program, at 1-800-701-0501. Counselors do not sell plans.
The dates that matter: the annual window runs October 15 to December 7, 2026, and coverage you choose starts January 1. People in an Advantage plan get one more change from January 1 to March 31, 2027. The full Medicare calendar.
Methodology
Source. All state figures come from the CMS fact sheets Medicare Open Enrollment in [state], 2027, released September 28, 2026: one sheet for each of the 50 states, DC, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. We transcribed every figure into one table and checked each line against the PDF. Part D benefit parameters for 2025, 2026 and 2027 come from Table V-2 of CMS’s rate announcements for 2026 and 2027.
Rankings cover the 50 states and DC. The five territories are kept in the data file but left out of the rankings. Alaska’s fact sheet has no Advantage figures, so Advantage rankings cover 50 jurisdictions. The averages are CMS’s as published. The median is ours: the middle value across jurisdictions, not weighted by enrollment.
What the fact sheets do not show: plan names, star ratings, drug lists, pharmacy networks or what any one person will pay. Your own cost depends on your prescriptions and pharmacy, which is what the Plan Finder calculates.
Download the data: medicare-2027-state-landscape.csv, 56 rows, one per state or territory. Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0. Please credit: NYC Med News, “Medicare 2027 in New York, by the Numbers,” October 7, 2026, from CMS data.
Questions people ask
What is the cheapest Medicare Part D plan in New York for 2027?
The lowest monthly premium for a stand-alone Part D plan in New York in 2027 is $37.30, according to CMS. Plan names and what each costs for your prescriptions are in the Medicare Plan Finder.
Why are Part D drug plans more expensive in New York?
CMS’s fact sheet reports the figure without explaining it. What it does show is that every New Yorker in a stand-alone plan can find a 2027 plan with a lower premium than in 2026, and that more New Yorkers get Extra Help than in any other state.
How many Medicare Advantage plans are there in New York for 2027?
227, up from 218 in 2026. That is the fifth most of any state, after Florida, Texas, California and Pennsylvania.
What is the average Medicare Advantage premium in New York in 2027?
$30.79 a month, down from $36.19 in 2026. It is the ninth highest among the states and DC; the median state’s average is $12.93. Every New Yorker with Medicare has access to a plan with a $0 premium.
What is the Part D out-of-pocket maximum for 2027?
$2,400 for covered drugs, up from $2,100 in 2026 and $2,000 in 2025. After you reach it, covered drugs cost nothing for the rest of the year.
What is the maximum Part D deductible in 2027?
$700, up from $615 in 2026. Plans may charge a lower deductible or none.
How many people have Medicare in New York?
4,054,716, according to the CMS fact sheet for 2027. Only California, Florida and Texas have more.
When can I change my Medicare plan for 2027?
From October 15 to December 7, 2026, with coverage starting January 1. If you are in an Advantage plan, you get one more change between January 1 and March 31, 2027.
Sources
- CMS — 2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D landscape, state-by-state fact sheets (September 28, 2026) (checked 2026-10-07)
- CMS — Announcement of Calendar Year 2027 Medicare Advantage capitation rates and Part D payment policies, Table V-2 (checked 2026-10-07)
- CMS — Announcement of Calendar Year 2026 Medicare Advantage capitation rates and Part D payment policies, Part D benefit parameters (checked 2026-10-07)
- Medicare.gov — Medicare Plan Finder (checked 2026-10-07)
- NYS Office for the Aging — HIICAP, free Medicare counseling (checked 2026-09-29)
More in Research and Data: New York Health Coverage and Costs, in Numbers
- Essential Plan Insurers in New York City for 2027: Quality Ratings, Complaints and What the Network Data Shows — The seven Essential Plan insurers rated in New York City, compared on the state's star ratings, member experience, enrollment and DFS complaint data, with a CSV.
- Medicaid in NYC Before the 2027 Work Requirement: Enrollment by Borough, 2024 to 2026 — NYC Medicaid fell by 341,901 people, or 8.7%, from August 2025 to August 2026, months before the work rule starts. Queens lost the most. State data, CSV.
- ER Bills for Uninsured Patients at NYC Hospitals: Self-Pay Visits and Charges at 51 Hospitals — One in ten NYC ER visits in 2024 was self-pay. The median bill ran from $1,234 to $7,032 by hospital. State data for 51 hospitals, with a CSV download.
This page explains how the system works. It is not medical advice. More.