As we approach 2026, UC San Diego Medical has announced significant changes regarding the Medicare Advantage plans they will accept. Up until now, UCSD welcomed a handful of Medicare Advantage plans, including HMO options, allowing flexibility for a broad group of Medicare beneficiaries. However, starting in 2026, UCSD Medical will only accept a select number of Medicare Advantage plans while still accepting all Medicare Supplement plans (Medigap). This change will affect many patients who rely on UCSD Medical as their primary healthcare provider. Members on Humana, UnitedHealthcare®, and Blue Shield plans have all received letters from their carriers informing them they will no longer have access to UCSD in 2026.
Members have the option to switch to a new plan now that we are in Annual Open Enrollment. If you are losing access to UCSD, you may even have access to a Supplement Plan with “Guarantee Issue”: No Health Screening required.
Have Questions? Give us a call!
Our licensed and professional Medicare enrollment support team in San Diego are available to discuss your health care plan options for FREE. Call Keaton & Alexa Marks: (760) 484-0979
Why is UCSD restricting which Advantage Plans they accept?
This decision by UCSD Medical follows a similar and even more restrictive policy shift by Scripps Health. Effective January 1, 2024, Scripps hospitals stopped accepting all Medicare Advantage plans, only accepting Supplement plans moving forward. This shift left nearly 50,000 Scripps patients with a need to find new providers, and many of them moved their care to UCSD Medical. The increased demand for services has placed additional pressure on UCSD’s medical team, and the decision to narrow the range of accepted Medicare Advantage plans in 2025 and again in 2026 appears to be a response to this influx of new patients. UCSD’s new policy is aimed at managing patient load while still providing high-quality care to those in the Medicare system.
How does UCSD’s 2026 decision on Medicare Advantage Plans impact patients?
Medicare patients affected by UCSD’s new policy have until December 7, 2025, the end of Medicare Open Enrollment, to make adjustments to their Medicare coverage in 2026. Here are a few key steps to consider:
- Check Your Plan: First, confirm whether UCSD will accept your current Medicare Advantage plan in 2026. There are some members who will be grandfathered in to UCSD under their current Advantage plan. For example, Humana has sent letters to members who will be losing their access to UCSD in 2026. Members on Advantage PPO plans from Blue Shield and UnitedHealthcare are also subject to lose access to UCSD next year.
- Consider Your Options: If your Humana plan or other Advantage plan will no longer be accepted, you have a couple of options:
- Switch to a Plan UCSD Accepts: HealthyMarks can help you find a plan that will still be accepted at UCSD. You can then switch to one of these during the Medicare Open Enrollment Period. Some Advantage plans will offer access to UCSD hospitals and specialists if you get a Primary Care Doctor elsewhere. You can see here which plans are accepted on the UCSD’s Accepted Health Plans page.
- Find New Providers: Alternatively, if you prefer to stay with your current plan, you may need to seek a new network of providers that accepts it.
What Medicare Advantage Plans will UCSD accept in 2026?
UCSD will only accept a narrower set of Medicare Advantage plans. Some of these will require you to select a PCP affiliated with UCSD (for example, at Perlman Clinic or One Medical) in order to retain access. In those cases, UCSD will still provide specialty care or hospital-level services if you follow the network rules (referrals, authorizations) and choose the right PCP arrangement.
A popular solution with access to UCSD has been the SCAN Advantage Plans offered through SCAN Health Plan.
HealthyMarks Medicare can help you navigate this process by finding a Medicare Advantage plan that offers strong coverage and access to providers that are still in-network. This is your opportunity to ensure uninterrupted care.
January 13th 2026 Update
On January 13th, SCAN members on SCAN Alta were notified that they will no longer be grandfathered into UCSD on the SCAN Alta plan effective March 1st 2026. These members were assigned new Primary Care Doctors at Regal Medical Group. Regal has some overlap with UCSD Health specialists, but to be clear, they are affiliated with all UCSD specialty departments including their hospitals.
Because we are currently in MA OEP, members who received this notification have the option to make changes. Give us a call if you are interested in hearing all the options you have.
For a list of Medicare plans that UCSD will accept in 2026, please visit UCSD’s Accepted Health Plans page. This page provides up-to-date information on the specific plans you can rely on for UCSD services.
Reach Out to HealthyMarks Medicare for Help
Navigating Medicare changes can be complicated, but you don’t have to do it alone. The team at HealthyMarks Medicare specializes in helping Medicare beneficiaries in our community find the right healthcare options. If you have questions about UCSD’s policy, need assistance understanding your Medicare options, or want to ensure you’re covered for 2026, please reach out. We’re here to make this process as smooth as possible.
Keaton Marks is the owner and CEO at HealthyMarks including the medicare team. Keaton was born and raised in Encinitas. He often rode his bike through town and to the local beaches like Moonlight. Keaton knows it is important to have a local resource, someone who understands the area, the hospitals and networks of doctors. Keaton is proud to be a local Medicare broker who is able to assist the people in his town when selecting medicare plans.
Keaton believes one thing above all else: “Medicare is confusing… but it doesn’t have to be! That is where HealthyMarks Medicare comes in” Please contact me with any questions.
I am under Va care
VA benefits and Medicare are separate health insurance systems, but veterans can be enrolled in both.
Scripps would not accept your VA benefits.
I’m looking forward for Medicare quote
Hi Leonard,
I just sent you an email. I look forward to speaking with you.
Our team at HealthyMarks would love to help anyone needing a Medicare quote.
I cam a retired nurse @UCSD. My current plan is Humana, I heard that plan will no longer be available. I have established doctors that to.
Yes, that is correct. Many Humana Advantage plans (along with many other Advantage plans) are no longer going to provide access to UCSD in 2025. There are many options for you to switch to. Let me know if you need help finding a new plan.
Yes I do. I went to schedule my yearly exams and contacted the Dr I had been assigned and was told she no longer accepts new patients. She then went on to say that UCSD will no longer be affiliated with Humana after the end of the year. I think its time to change my medicare carrier. Plus I also found out that I was losing a lot of my benefits thru Humana.
Thanks for sharing these details. Sounds like it is time to evaluate some new options. Please give us a call in October for 2026 Open Enrollment.
Medicare HMO Blue Shield Select PPO lost renewal contract with UCSD effective 7/8/25. All my established doctors are with UCSD Healthcare.
Please help me find another Medicare HMO plan that will keep me in the UCSD network.
Hi Rachel, I’m sorry you are going through this. We would love to help you. Right now UCSD and Blue Shield are still working on negotiations until July 9th. I do have faith they will come to an agreement. If they dont come to terms then you will be eligible for “Special Enrollment” and we can help you find a plan that best suites you. There are still other Advantage plans with access to UCSD. Here is a link to the updates:
https://news.blueshieldca.com/2025/05/05/blue-shield-of-california-committed-to-ensuring-members-have-access-to-affordable-care-with-uc-health-providers-and-facilities
I don’t know if this site is still active since all of the questions were mostly from 2024. But if so, I knew that my Humana plan with UCSD wouldn’t be offered again in 2026, and I thought there’d be new information on their site listing other Medicare Advantage Plans accepted there. But when nothing changed this Open Enrollment period, and I spoke with the contracting dept., and also received a letter from UCSD, I was told all I could do with Medicare is use traditional with a Medigap plan, or try the Scan Plan that doesn’t allow me to see my UCSD primary (who I find to have been one of my best primaries). So I’ve been to the Medicare site and took a look at some of those Medigap plans, and they’re expensive! Do Social Security recipients automatically have the near $200 deducted each month from their incomes if they’re not with the VA, in addition to the cost of the Medigap plan? I have benefitted from the Medicare Advantage Plan(s) $0 premiums since beginning with SSDI in 2010, and am a very low-income, partially-disabled senior at the age of 66 with multiple sclerosis working part time just to stay housed with my roommate. I didn’t see any Medigap plans that started at a low-cost premium.
Hi Deborah, I’m sorry you are one of the many people that UCSD has essentially kicked out of their Medicare Coverage. You are correct, the Supplement Plans are much more expensive than the Advantage Plans. You are also correct that moving to a different Advantage Plan will require you to find a new Primary Care Doctor. I wish there were better options for you. Let me know if you’d like to talk on the phone and we can come up with the best scenario for you. Thank you for your comment.