Medicare Advantage in Santa Cruz County, California
15,368 people in Santa Cruz County, California were enrolled in Medicare Advantage in October 2026, 25.6% of 59,978 eligible beneficiaries (−0.4 pts since October 2025). Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. is the largest parent organization with 39% of reported enrollment; 14 parent organizations have 11 or more members and the HHI is 2,682 (highly concentrated). HRSA classifies the county as partly rural. For 2027, 155 members here are in plans that terminate or leave the county, and Montage Health, SANTA CLARA COUNTY HEALTH AUTHORITY leave. MA plans offered go from 5 to 5.
Parent organizations in Santa Cruz County
| Parent organization | Members | Change since October 2025 | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. | 5,980 | +782 | 39.1% |
| Alignment Healthcare USA, LLC | 4,262 | +1,180 | 27.9% |
| UnitedHealth Group, Inc. | 2,774 | −99 | 18.2% |
| Elevance Health, Inc. | 597 | +1 | 3.9% |
| California Physicians' Service | 552 | +48 | 3.6% |
| SANTA CRUZ MONTEREY MERCED SAN BENITO MARIPOSA MAN | 393 | new | 2.6% |
| Imperial Health Plan of California | 361 | +246 | 2.4% |
| CVS Health Corporation | 183 | −2,451 | 1.2% |
| Montage Health | 59 | +2 | 0.4% |
| Humana Inc. | 52 | +26 | 0.3% |
| Centene Corporation | 26 | −3 | 0.2% |
| Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan Mutual Ins. Co. | 14 | −1 | under 0.1% |
| SANTA CLARA COUNTY HEALTH AUTHORITY | 13 | +2 | under 0.1% |
| SCAN Group | 12 | new | under 0.1% |
CMS suppresses county and contract counts of 10 or fewer; shares are of reported enrollment.
Value-based care alongside MA
In PY 2024, 20,193 beneficiaries in Santa Cruz County were assigned to 90 Medicare Shared Savings Program ACOs, 63.1% of assignable Original Medicare beneficiaries. Together, roughly 73% of all Medicare beneficiaries in the county are in Medicare Advantage or an MSSP ACO. See the ACOs in the MSSP Explorer.