Humana executives on Wednesday sketched out how the company is approaching the 2027 Medicare Advantage bid cycle, saying the insurer may need to adjust benefits to reach a stable margin by 2028. Chief Executive Jim Rechtin said the Trump administration moved away from a flat rate proposal for 2027 and finalized a slight increase, but not enough to keep pace with rising costs.
Rechtin said medical cost trend is still running ahead of program funding. He said the company is thinking about what changes to benefits would be needed to reach a sustainable, durable long-term margin while limiting the impact on members. “That’s the logic you’re going through each and every year,” he said.
Humana affirmed its 2026 outlook on Wednesday morning and reported $1.19 billion in profit on $39.6 billion in revenue for Q1. The company said it expects to earn at least $9 per share this year and sees a medical loss ratio of 92.75% for 2026. It also projected its Medicare Advantage membership will rise by about 25% from 2025 levels.
The pricing work comes after a bruising stretch for the company. In 2024, cost trends put pressure on Humana, and in October the courts rejected its legal challenge to vacate ratings that had become a problem for the business. Humana said the number of people enrolled in plans with four or more stars in 2025 fell sharply, a sign that future star ratings remain a likely headwind.
George Renaudin said the bid process requires reviewing benefits market by market and figuring out what matters most to members, along with the provider relationships that support those benefits. Humana said its efforts to transform and adapt are more mature than they were two years ago, but the company is still making decisions in an industry where elevated costs continue to pressure Medicare Advantage. The next test is whether it can defend margins without trimming too much of what members value most.
