Providence Swedish will stop accepting three UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans at its Everett hospitals and clinics on Jan. 1, 2027.

The change affects UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage PPO, HMO and Group Retiree plans, according to a notice Providence posted Sept. 23.

It covers Providence Swedish, Providence Medical Group, Swedish Medical Group and PacMed Clinics in Snohomish, King, Thurston and Lewis counties. That includes Providence Regional Medical Center Everett, the city's largest hospital.

Seniors enrolled in those plans who want to keep seeing their Providence doctors will need to switch to a different Medicare Advantage carrier during the Medicare Annual Enrollment Period, which runs Oct. 15 through Dec. 7.

Providence said in the notice that it would connect affected patients with resources to explore other Medicare options.

The health system directed patients without a Medicare advisor to contact American Senior Resources, an independent insurance agency, at 877-315-3279 or asrconnect.com.

Not everyone is affected. Patients on traditional Medicare, including those with a Medigap supplement or Part D prescription drug plan, will still be accepted at all Providence Swedish and PacMed locations.

UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage D-SNP (Dual Special Needs Plan) members are also unaffected. The change does not touch UnitedHealthcare commercial HMO and PPO plans either.

Patients receiving active treatment for a chronic condition may qualify for extended in-network access through UnitedHealthcare under a "Continuity of Care" provision. Providence advised those patients to call the number on the back of their insurance card.

The contract termination comes as Providence Swedish, which operates the region's largest hospital network, has clashed with insurers over reimbursement. In a July notice about a separate commercial contract dispute with Cigna, Providence said it could not keep absorbing rising care costs without higher reimbursement rates from insurers. That dispute resulted in a short-term extension through Sept. 30. Providence has not publicly stated whether reimbursement was the issue behind the UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage decision.

UnitedHealthcare has not issued a public response to the contract termination. The number of Snohomish County patients enrolled in the affected plans is not available in public records.

Coverage under the current UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage contract continues through Dec. 31.