UHC and AARP Medicare Advantage: Kansas City 2027

UnitedHealthcare sells Medicare Advantage plans in the Kansas City area, and many of its plans carry the AARP name. If you have one of these cards, the big question for 2027 is simple: will my hospital still take it? This page pulls together what each hospital system has posted, on both sides of State Line, so you can check before December 7.

This only matters for Medicare Advantage plans. Original Medicare lets you use any doctor or hospital in the U.S. that takes Medicare. A Medicare Supplement (Medigap) plan, including an AARP Medicare Supplement plan, works alongside Original Medicare. The exception is a Medicare SELECT supplement, which can require you to use its network hospitals.

Kansas City hospitals and UnitedHealthcare at a glance

Hospital system	Status we found	What the source says
Saint Luke’s (Saint Luke’s Hospital, East, North, South)	In network for 2027	Saint Luke’s lists UnitedHealthcare and AARP Medicare Advantage plans as accepted starting January 1, 2027
NKC Health (North Kansas City Hospital, Meritas Health)	Out of network	Out of network since October 1, 2026, including AARP plans. For 2027, NKC Health lists Humana as its accepted Medicare Advantage plan
The University of Kansas Health System, including Olathe Hospital	Listed as accepted	Its insurance page lists UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage for its Kansas City metro, Olathe and Paola locations. No 2027 date is given. Ask your plan
HCA Midwest Health	Listed at Menorah	Menorah Medical Center lists UnitedHealthcare Medicare HMO and PPO plans. Other HCA hospitals: ask your plan
University Health	Ask your plan	No public 2027 announcement found
AdventHealth (Shawnee Mission and other Kansas City sites)	Ask your plan	A September 2026 dispute with UnitedHealthcare was about Central Florida. We found nothing naming Kansas City
Liberty Hospital	Ask your plan	No public 2027 announcement found

Hospital lists change during the year. Always confirm with your plan’s 2027 provider directory before you enroll.

Saint Luke’s: staying in network

Saint Luke’s is part of BJC Health. For 2027, it lists UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage and several AARP Medicare Advantage plans as accepted at Saint Luke’s Hospital, Saint Luke’s East, Saint Luke’s North and Saint Luke’s South.

That is the opposite of what is happening with Aetna. Saint Luke’s leaves Aetna Medicare Advantage on January 1, 2027. If that is your plan, read Saint Luke’s leaving Aetna and our Aetna Medicare Advantage guide for 2027.

NKC Health: out since October 1

NKC Health is the name North Kansas City Hospital and Meritas Health have shared since June 2025. NKC Health has been out of network with UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage since October 1, 2026. That includes AARP plans. NKC Health says that in 2027 it will accept Original Medicare, Humana Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement plans.

Two things can soften the change. NKC Health says employer-sponsored group Medicare Advantage plans often have open access, so people with those plans may still be seen there. And if you are in active treatment, NKC Health suggests asking UnitedHealthcare about continuity of care. UnitedHealthcare decides those requests. The full story is in NKC Health and Medicare Advantage.

The University of Kansas Health System and Liberty Hospital

The University of Kansas Health System’s insurance page lists UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage for its Kansas City metro, Olathe and Paola locations. The page does not mention 2027, and it says the list can change without notice. Liberty Hospital joined the same system in July 2024 but keeps its own insurance list. We did not find a 2027 change for either one.

HCA Midwest Health

HCA Midwest runs Research Medical Center, Menorah, Overland Park Regional, Centerpoint, Lee’s Summit Medical Center, Belton Regional and other hospitals. Menorah’s insurance page lists UnitedHealthcare Medicare HMO and PPO plans. Each HCA hospital keeps its own list, so check the one you use.

University Health and AdventHealth

We did not find a public 2027 UnitedHealthcare announcement from University Health or from AdventHealth’s Kansas City hospitals. You may have seen news this fall about AdventHealth and UnitedHealthcare. That story was about Central Florida. No news is not a promise, so check your plan’s 2027 directory.

Is UnitedHealthcare leaving any Kansas City counties?

UnitedHealthcare is still offering Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. KFF, a health research group, counted that UnitedHealth Group is leaving 228 counties and entering 9 across the country for 2027. KFF did not list them by county.

As of November 1, 2026, we have not seen a public list showing UnitedHealthcare leaving Jackson, Clay, Platte or Cass County in Missouri, or Johnson or Wyandotte County in Kansas. A single plan can still end even when the company stays in a county. Your mail is the best answer.

If you got a letter saying your plan is ending

UnitedHealthcare dated its 2027 plan-ending letters October 2, 2026. If you got one, your plan ends December 31, 2026. You do not lose Medicare.

Pick a new plan by December 7 and it starts January 1, with no gap.
You also get a Special Enrollment Period. Medicare.gov says it runs from December 8 through the last day of February. If you join a plan after December 7, ask the new plan when your coverage starts.
If you do nothing, you go back to Original Medicare on January 1.
You may have a right to buy a Medicare Supplement plan without health questions. Medicare’s Medigap guide says that when your Medicare Advantage plan leaves Medicare or stops giving care in your area and you switch to Original Medicare, you can buy certain Medigap plans sold in your state. You must apply no more than 63 days after your Medicare Advantage coverage ends, and the Medigap policy can’t start until that coverage ends.

Our plan ending letter guide walks through the steps.

How to check your own plan

Find your card. Note the exact plan name and whether it says HMO or PPO.
Read your Annual Notice of Change for 2027. It shows changes to costs, drugs and the network.
Look up your hospital and each doctor in the 2027 provider directory, not the 2026 one.
If something is out of network, compare other plans before December 7.

What to do next

For every Kansas City hospital system and every carrier in one table, see Kansas City hospital networks for 2027. For Humana, see what Humana’s 2027 changes mean for Kansas City. Our doctors and hospitals page explains how networks work.

Cole Insure is an independent agency. We compare plans from many companies and check your doctors, your hospital and your medicines against the 2027 plans we offer. We help people across the Kansas City metro and anywhere in Missouri or Kansas, by phone or video. Our help is free, and there is no pressure. Call (816) 307-6165 or book a free review. 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.