Top Payers Jockey Behind UnitedHealthcare in 2021 Medicare Open Enrollment Period

Medicare Advantage enrollment grew by about 257,000 lives during the 2021 Open Enrollment Period (OEP), according to CMS’s May data release and AIS’s Directory of Health Plans. As in the Annual Election Period (AEP), UnitedHealthcare dominated, holding about 32% of the overall OEP gains. Still, there were some shakeups among the other largest MA payers. In terms of membership gains, Centene Corp. (including enrollment from its WellCare brands) jumped from the No. 4 spot in the AEP to the No. 2 spot in the OEP, while Kaiser Permanente rose from No. 7 to No. 5. Cigna Corp., meanwhile, lost much of its momentum from the AEP, dropping from No. 9 to No. 20. See the top 25 OEP performers in the chart below.

NOTES: AEP Results = Enrollment change from October 2020 to February 2021; OEP Results = Enrollment change from February 2021 to May 2021.

SOURCE: CMS; DHP, AIS’s Directory of Health Plans; MMIT Analytics. Learn more about how DHP delivers current and comprehensive plan enrollment data at https://bit.ly/2RidwDT.

© 2025 MMIT
Carina Belles

Carina Belles

Carina has been covering public-sector health care since 2018. As a data reporter for Radar on Medicare Advantage, she creates infographics and data stories on issues impacting Medicare, Medicaid and Part D. She also develops AIS Health Daily, a free daily newsletter that showcases AIS’s strong reporting across our four publications and parent company Norstella’s suite of market access and data solutions. Prior to joining the editorial team, she managed Medicare and Medicaid data for the Directory of Health Plans, AIS’s industry-standard health coverage database. She graduated from Ohio University with a B.S. in Journalism.

Related Posts

handshake
December 5

Warranties Can Help Mitigate Risk for Payers, Manufacturers Alike

Read More
businessman-analyzing-company-report-working-with-digital-augmented-reality-graphics
December 5

MMIT Payer Portrait: Intermountain’s Select Health

Read More
old-man-touching-eye
December 5

Even at 10% Discount, Eylea Biosimilar Pavblu Offers Lower-Cost Option

Read More

GAIN THERAPEUTIC AREA-SPECIFIC INTEL TO DRIVE ACCESS FOR YOUR BRAND

Sign up for publications to get unmatched business intelligence delivered to your inbox.

subscribe today