Medica Is Leaving Iowa, Kansas & Oklahoma: What Members Should Do for 2027

What Medica Announced

Medica, a nonprofit health plan, confirmed it will no longer offer individual marketplace plans in three states for plan year 2027. The company said the decision came from a regular review of its product offerings "to ensure they support stability, sustainability and affordability." Here's who's affected:

Importantly, this is not a full withdrawal. Medica will continue offering marketplace coverage in Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. If you're in one of those states, this announcement doesn't affect your plan.

Medica isn't alone. At least a dozen insurers are exiting or shrinking their ACA footprints for 2027, after enhanced premium tax credits expired at the end of 2025 and 2027 premiums rose a median of roughly 15% nationally. For the full picture, see our guides to insurer exits in 2027 and 2027 premium increases.

Your Coverage Is Safe Through December 31, 2026

Nothing about your current plan changes because of this announcement. Your Medica plan continues through the end of 2026 with the same benefits, the same network, and the same costs. Keep paying premiums, keep seeing your doctors, keep filling prescriptions. The exit affects plan year 2027 — there simply won't be a Medica option in Iowa, Kansas, or Oklahoma when you shop for January coverage.

What the Discontinuation Letter Means

Insurers leaving a market are required to notify affected members that their plan won't be offered the following year. If you have a Medica marketplace plan in one of the three states, watch your mail for a discontinuation letter. It's official notice, not a bill or a sales pitch — but don't throw it out. It confirms that your plan ends December 31, 2026, and that you'll need to choose new coverage during Open Enrollment. It may also describe what happens if you take no action, which brings us to the biggest trap of the year.

How to Pick Your Replacement Plan

Losing a carrier you liked is annoying, but the replacement process is manageable if you work from your own needs instead of the marketplace's default match. One note specific to these three states: smaller markets like Iowa, Kansas, and Oklahoma may have only a handful of remaining carriers. That makes a careful comparison faster — but also more important, because each remaining option can differ sharply in network and drug coverage:

For a state-by-state look at your remaining options, see our pages on health insurance in Iowa, Kansas, and Oklahoma.

Your Timeline From Here

1. Now through the fall: Watch your mail for Medica's discontinuation letter. It's your official notice that your plan won't be offered in 2027 — keep it with your insurance paperwork.
2. Late October: Window-shopping typically opens on HealthCare.gov — you can preview 2027 plans and prices in your county before enrollment starts.
3. November 1, 2026: Open Enrollment begins. You can enroll in any plan available in your area — Medica's exit doesn't limit your choices.
4. December 15, 2026: The deadline that matters. Enroll by this date and your new coverage starts January 1, 2027 — zero gap after your Medica plan ends December 31.
5. January 15, 2027: Open Enrollment closes. Enrollments after December 15 generally start February 1, which means a month-long gap after your Medica coverage ends.

The Bottom Line

Medica's three-state exit is smaller than some of this year's headline withdrawals, but if you're one of the roughly 13,000 affected members in Iowa, Kansas, or Oklahoma, the size of the announcement doesn't matter — your plan is ending either way. Your coverage runs through December 31 no matter what. Between November 1 and December 15, you choose a replacement — actively, against your own list of doctors and medications — and you start January 1 with no gap. The only losing move is assuming the system will sort it out for you.