Saint Luke's Leaves Aetna Medicare: Kansas City

If you have an Aetna Medicare Advantage plan and you use Saint Luke’s, you have a decision to make before December 7. Starting January 1, 2027, Saint Luke’s doctors, clinics and hospitals will be out of network for those plans. Here is what we know and what to do about it.

Who this affects

This affects people with an Aetna Medicare Advantage plan who use Saint Luke’s in the Kansas City area. That includes Saint Luke’s Hospital on the Plaza, Saint Luke’s East in Lee’s Summit, Saint Luke’s North in the Northland, Saint Luke’s South in Overland Park, and Saint Luke’s physician offices across the metro.

Saint Luke’s is part of BJC Health, based in St. Louis. The same change applies to BJC hospitals and Washington University doctors there. KCTV5 reported it on October 21, 2026.

It does not affect everyone with an Aetna card. The hospital says these people are not affected:

People with Original Medicare. Saint Luke’s still takes Medicare.
People with a Medicare Supplement plan, including an Aetna supplement. A supplement is not a Medicare Advantage plan, and standard supplements have no network.
People with an Aetna commercial plan, such as a plan through a job. BJC says those agreements run into 2027 and beyond.

Not sure which kind of Aetna plan you have? A Medicare Advantage card usually says “Medicare Advantage” or has an HMO or PPO label. If in doubt, call us and we will tell you.

What changes on January 1

The current contract runs through December 31, 2026. BJC says it could not reach a new agreement after lengthy negotiations. On January 1, 2027, Saint Luke’s becomes out of network for Aetna Medicare Advantage plans.

Saint Luke’s is clear that this covers all of it. In its own words, “Saint Luke’s physicians, other providers, and Saint Luke’s facilities will all be considered out of network for Aetna Medicare Advantage plans.” Some people heard that certain doctors would stay in network. They will not.

Emergency care is the exception. A Medicare Advantage plan must cover emergency care at any hospital.

What it means if you keep the plan

You can keep your Aetna Medicare Advantage plan and keep going to Saint Luke’s. The question is what you will pay.

On an HMO plan, routine care outside the network is usually not covered at all. You would pay the full bill or move to a doctor in the network.
On a PPO plan, out-of-network care may be covered, but your share is higher. BJC says Aetna has told patients they can keep seeing BJC providers but has not fully explained that this “may result in significantly higher costs.”

Saint Luke’s says that in most cases, staying means higher out-of-pocket costs or different coverage rules, and that patients will generally be sent to other Aetna network providers.

One more path. If you are in the middle of treatment, such as cancer care, or you need a service only Saint Luke’s offers here, Aetna may approve out-of-network care for a time. This is called continuity of care. It is not automatic. You have to ask, and the plan decides.

Your options during Open Enrollment

The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 to December 7, 2026. Any change you make now starts January 1, 2027, the same day the Saint Luke’s contract ends. You have two main choices.

Switch to a Medicare Advantage plan that has Saint Luke’s in network. Saint Luke’s will stay in network with some other Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. We do not list them here, because any list we publish can go stale. Instead, we check the current 2027 network list for your doctors, your hospital and your medicines, and tell you plainly which plans fit. Networks change every year, and we check them for you.

Go to Original Medicare plus a Medicare Supplement and a Part D drug plan. With this setup, you can see any doctor or hospital in the country that takes Medicare, Saint Luke’s included, and there is no network to check each fall. One caveat matters. Outside your first months on Medicare, a supplement company can ask health questions and can say no. Missouri’s yearly anniversary rule helps people who already have a supplement switch to a like plan, but it does not help someone moving from Medicare Advantage. Some people leaving a Medicare Advantage plan do have a guaranteed right to a supplement, so ask before you assume. We explain the rules on Missouri vs Kansas and our Medicare Supplements page.

If you miss December 7, there is a second chance. The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period runs January 1 to March 31, 2027. If you are in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can switch to another one or return to Original Medicare, one time. The change starts the first of the next month, so you could be out of network for part of the winter.

If your Aetna plan comes from a former employer, Saint Luke’s suggests asking the benefits office about adding a plan that includes Saint Luke’s. Group plans have their own rules, so talk to us first.

What if the two sides reach a deal later

It could happen. BJC and Aetna announced a deal in December 2025, days before last year’s deadline. It covered Medicare Advantage for one year only, which is why the contract ends this December. BJC says it “remains committed to finding a solution,” and Aetna says it is open to an agreement.

Do not plan around a deal that has not happened. If you switch and a deal comes later, you still have a plan that works. If you stay and no deal comes, you start January out of network. If news changes, we will tell our clients, and you can check the Saint Luke’s page linked below.

What to do this week

Find your card and confirm whether you have an Aetna Medicare Advantage plan.
Write down every doctor you see, your hospital, your pharmacy and your medicines.
Call the number on your card and ask what Saint Luke’s visits would cost you in 2027. If you are in active treatment, ask about continuity of care.
Call us before you change anything. We will check your list against the 2027 networks and lay out both paths, with no pressure.

Call us first. We are a local, independent agency, and there is no fee to work with us. Reach us at (816) 307-6165. The deadline for January 1 coverage is December 7, 2026.

Live near Kansas City? See our local Medicare help page for the hospitals, networks and sign-up rules that apply to you.