Grand Junction · When your plan is ending
Do Unused Medicare Advantage Benefits Roll Over to 2027?
No. A Medicare Advantage plan's extra benefits are tied to the plan year, so an unused dental, over-the-counter or flex card balance ends on December 31, 2026. That is true every year. It matters more this fall if your plan is being discontinued, because in January you will have a different plan, a different card and possibly a different dentist network. Here is the rule, what to use before the year ends, and what to ask.
The bottom line
- Nothing carries into 2027. Federal rule says a plan's allowance "must be limited to the specific plan year."
- Nothing transfers between plans. A new plan means a new card and a new allowance, even from the same company.
- Finish dental work in December. Crowns, bridges and dentures that cross January 1 are where people get caught.
- Original Medicare with a Medigap policy has no extras. Medicare.gov: "You pay all costs for non-covered services."
- Pick the 2027 plan on doctors, drugs and the out-of-pocket limit. Use the extras to break a tie.
The letter says your plan will not be offered in 2027. You have dealt with the large questions, or you are about to: which plan is next, whether your doctors are in it, what happens to your prescriptions. Then you remember the card in your wallet with money still on it, and the crown your dentist wants to start in November.
Medicare calls these supplemental benefits. Medicare.gov describes them this way: "Plans may also offer extra benefits that Original Medicare doesn't cover – like some vision, hearing and dental services." They are part of the plan, approved by CMS one year at a time, and they end when the plan year ends.
What the federal rule says
The rule is 42 CFR § 422.102. It lets a plan offer extras as a dollar allowance, and it sets the limit in the same sentence: "Use of a uniform dollar amount as a maximum plan allowance for a package of supplemental benefits," and "Allowance must be limited to the specific plan year." Where a plan pays you back for an expense, "Reimbursements must be limited to the specific plan year."
The rule covers the card too. A plan that delivers benefits on a debit card must "Ensure debit cards are limited to the specific plan year." So the balance does not follow you, and the plan is not allowed to let it.
Inside the year, plans have some room. Some let an unused monthly or quarterly amount carry to the next period, and some do not. That detail is in your plan's Evidence of Coverage, and member services can tell you in one call.
What ends on December 31, benefit by benefit
| Extra benefit | What happens December 31 | What to do before then |
|---|---|---|
| Over-the-counter (OTC) allowance | Ends. The balance does not move to a new plan. | Spend the current period's allowance on things you will use. Check whether your plan loads it monthly or quarterly. |
| Flex or benefit card (debit card) | Ends. Federal rule limits the card to the plan year. | Use it for the eligible expenses you already planned. Keep receipts for anything the card declined. |
| Dental yearly maximum | Ends. A 2027 plan starts its own maximum under its own rules. | Schedule the cleaning, the fillings and any started work so it is finished in December. |
| Eyewear allowance | Ends if unused. | Order glasses or contacts before the holidays. Delivery can take weeks. |
| Hearing aid benefit | Ends if unused. Aids you already bought are yours. | Ask in writing who handles follow-up fittings and warranty service after the plan ends. |
| Fitness membership | Ends with the plan. | Ask the gym what its own rate is, and check whether a 2027 plan uses the same fitness program. |
| Rides to medical appointments | Unused trips end. | Book December appointments now if you rely on the rides. |
| Part B premium reduction | Ends with the plan. It is a plan benefit, not a Medicare one. | Budget for the full Part B premium in January unless your 2027 plan has its own reduction. |
Sources: 42 CFR § 422.102(a)(6) and (g)(2) for the plan-year limit on allowances, reimbursements and debit cards. The amounts, the eligible items and the timing of each benefit are set by your plan; read its Evidence of Coverage or call the number on your card.
Use the benefits for things you need. Buying items to empty a card is not the goal. A dental cleaning you were due for, glasses with your current prescription and the pharmacy items you buy anyway are good uses.
How common these extras are
Source: KFF: Medicare Advantage 2026 Spotlight — A First Look at Plan Premiums and Benefits, from CMS Landscape and Benefit files. National figures for plans open to general enrollment.
Two things follow from those numbers. Dental, vision and hearing are nearly universal, so your next Medicare Advantage plan will very likely have some version of them. And the smaller extras are not guaranteed. The share of plans with an over-the-counter allowance fell in one year, so do not assume a 2027 plan has the one you use.
Dental work that crosses January 1
This is the question I get most. A cleaning is one visit. A crown is usually two, dentures can be several, and an implant can take months. If the first visit is in December under your current plan and the last is in January under another, which plan pays?
No Medicare rule answers that. Dental is an extra benefit, and each plan's Evidence of Coverage says which date it counts. So do three things:
- Ask your dentist to finish in December. Dental offices fill up before the holidays, so call in October.
- Ask your current plan, in writing, which date it counts for multi-visit work, and how much of your yearly maximum is left.
- Check the dentist against the 2027 plan's dental network. The dental network is often separate from the medical one. A plan can have your doctor and not your dentist.
If the work cannot be finished this year, it may be better to start it in January under the new plan, once you know that plan's maximum and whether your dentist is in it.
If the card is declined, or you paid out of pocket
The same federal rule requires a backup. A plan using a debit card must "Have an alternative process that allows for reimbursement of eligible expenses for plan covered benefits in circumstances where the debit card is unusable at the point of sale." If you bought something eligible in December and the card did not work, you can ask to be reimbursed.
The date of the purchase has to fall in the plan year. The deadline to send the receipt is the plan's own. Ask for it now, ask how long the plan accepts receipts after the year ends, and keep itemized receipts.
Holding a letter that says your plan is ending?
Bring the letter, your doctor list and your prescriptions. We will go through what ends on December 31 and what your choices are for January. No cost, and nothing to sign. We do not offer every plan available in your area.
Book a coverage review →If you are leaving for Original Medicare and a Medigap policy
A discontinued plan gives you a protected path to a Medicare Supplement policy in Colorado, and we cover it in the Medigap guaranteed-issue post. For many people with larger medical bills it is the right move. It does change the extras.
Original Medicare does not have them. Medicare.gov: "In most cases, Medicare doesn't cover dental services like routine cleanings, fillings, tooth extractions (removals), or items like dentures and implants." And, "You pay all costs for non-covered services." A Medigap policy pays your share of what Medicare covers. It does not add dental, glasses, hearing aids or an allowance card.
So plan for those costs separately. Some people buy a stand-alone dental policy and some pay the dentist directly. If your plan also reduced your Part B premium, that reduction ends too, and the full Part B premium applies again in January.
How much weight to give the extras in 2027
Less than the advertising suggests. The plan's Annual Notice of Change exists because "changes in coverage, costs, and more" take effect every January, and the extras are the part that changes most.
Compare the amounts. An allowance is a modest sum. A plan's yearly out-of-pocket limit for medical care is in the thousands of dollars, and care from a doctor who is out of network can cost more than that. I would choose in this order:
- Doctors and hospitals. See how to check a 2027 network.
- Prescriptions. See how to check a 2027 drug list.
- The yearly out-of-pocket limit and the copays for the care you use.
- The extras, to decide between plans that are equal on the first three.
The 2027 plan details become public in October on Medicare.gov. Until then, no one can tell you what a 2027 plan's dental maximum or allowance will be, and we will not guess.
What I would do, by date
- Now. Call member services. Ask for your remaining dental maximum, your allowance balance, and the receipt deadline.
- October. Book the dental, vision and hearing appointments you were putting off. A plan that is not renewing must tell you by October 2.
- October 15 to December 7. Choose the 2027 plan. Enrolling in this window is the calmer path, and the new plan starts January 1.
- By December 31, 2026. Finish the work and use the allowance. Keep receipts.
- After that. A discontinued plan gives you until the last day of February to enroll. We explain the dates in changing plans after December 7.
In Mesa County, 17,134 people were in a Medicare Advantage plan with drug coverage in June 2026, per CMS. Here, 26.6% of adults live with high blood pressure and 8.1% with diabetes, per CDC PLACES. For those households the medical and drug coverage decide what next year costs. The extras are worth using, and they are not the reason to choose a plan.
How we know all this: the Medicare On Main Data Desk frames every article with public data — here, 42 CFR § 422.102(a)(6) and (g)(2) for the plan-year limit on allowances, reimbursements and debit cards and for the reimbursement process, quoted as published; Medicare.gov's pages on comparing coverage, dental services and the Annual Notice of Change, quoted as published; KFF's analysis of the CMS 2026 Landscape and Benefit files for how common each extra benefit is; the CMS CY 2027 enrollment guidance for the dates; CMS Medicare Monthly Enrollment for Mesa County (June 2026); and CDC PLACES county data (2023). No company, plan, allowance amount or dental maximum is named, because those differ by plan and 2027 details are not yet public. This is education, not advice; confirm plans, costs and eligibility with a licensed agent or Medicare.gov. We take no payment from any carrier to feature a plan.
Frequently asked questions
Do Medicare Advantage benefits roll over to the next year?
No. Under 42 CFR § 422.102(a)(6), a plan's dollar allowance for extra benefits "must be limited to the specific plan year," and reimbursements "must be limited to the specific plan year." Whatever is left of a dental, over-the-counter or flex allowance on December 31, 2026 is gone on January 1, whether your plan renews or ends. Some plans let an unused amount carry from one month or quarter to the next inside the same year. That is the plan's choice, so check your Evidence of Coverage.
Does my Medicare flex card balance carry over to a new plan?
No. The card belongs to the plan that issued it. Federal rule requires plans to "Ensure debit cards are limited to the specific plan year," and a different plan in 2027 means a different card, a different allowance and often a different list of eligible items. Nothing transfers between plans, even two plans from the same company.
What happens to my dental work if my Medicare Advantage plan ends?
Your plan covers dental services through December 31, 2026 under its own terms. Work that takes more than one visit, like a crown, a bridge or dentures, is the risk. No Medicare rule decides which plan pays when the first visit is in December and the last is in January; the plan's Evidence of Coverage does. Ask your dentist to finish the work in December if it can be done, and ask the plan in writing which date it counts.
Do I lose dental coverage if I switch to Original Medicare and Medigap?
Yes, the routine kind. Medicare.gov says "In most cases, Medicare doesn't cover dental services like routine cleanings, fillings, tooth extractions (removals), or items like dentures and implants," and a Medigap policy pays your share of what Medicare covers, not services Medicare leaves out. People who take that path usually buy a separate dental policy or pay the dentist directly.
Can I be reimbursed in January for something I bought in December?
Often, if the purchase was eligible and made while you were covered. Plans that use a debit card must "Have an alternative process that allows for reimbursement of eligible expenses for plan covered benefits in circumstances where the debit card is unusable at the point of sale." The deadline to send in the receipt is the plan's own, so ask for it before the year ends and keep itemized receipts.
Should I choose my 2027 plan based on the extra benefits?
I would not start there. Extras change every year, and the amounts are modest next to the cost of a hospital stay. Check the doctors, the drug list and the yearly out-of-pocket limit first. If two plans are equal on those, the dental and over-the-counter benefits are a reasonable tie-breaker.
Sources
- 42 CFR § 422.102 — Supplemental benefits (Cornell LII) — "Allowance must be limited to the specific plan year"; "Ensure debit cards are limited to the specific plan year"; the alternative reimbursement process.
- 42 CFR § 422.100 — General requirements, benefits (Cornell LII) — what a supplemental benefit is.
- Medicare.gov — Compare Original Medicare and Medicare Advantage — "Plans may also offer extra benefits that Original Medicare doesn't cover."
- Medicare.gov — Dental services — what Original Medicare does not cover; "You pay all costs for non-covered services."
- Medicare.gov — Plan Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) — changes "that will be effective in January."
- KFF: Medicare Advantage 2026 Spotlight — A First Look at Plan Premiums and Benefits — the share of 2026 plans offering each extra benefit.
- CMS — CY 2027 Medicare Advantage and Part D Enrollment and Disenrollment Guidance — the enrollment dates for a plan that is not renewing.
- CMS Medicare Monthly Enrollment (data.cms.gov) — Mesa County, CO, June 2026 — 17,134 Medicare Advantage members with drug coverage.
- CDC PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, County 2023 — Mesa County high blood pressure and diabetes prevalence.
