Humana's Medicare Advantage Growth Was Impressive. Was It the Best-Performing Health Plan?

Humana reported one of the strongest Medicare Advantage enrollment results among large publicly traded health plans in the second quarter of 2026. The company gained considerable market share while several competitors reduced enrollment. That growth made Humana an enrollment leader, but it did not establish the company as the quarter's strongest overall financial performer.

Farzin Espahani

Strategic Advisor, Insurance Growth, Medicare Distribution, and Compliance

Published July 29, 2026

Key findings

→Humana's total Medicare Advantage membership increased 23.8% year over year to 7.18 million.
→Humana's Insurance segment revenue increased approximately 26%, while operating income increased only about 7%.
→The Insurance segment benefit ratio increased from 89.9% to 91.2%, indicating greater medical-cost pressure.
→The Insurance operating cost ratio improved from 8.3% to 7.1%.
→Humana's estimated Insurance operating margin declined from approximately 2.5% to 2.1%.
→UnitedHealthcare's operating margin increased from 2.4% to 4.6%, although its results included favorable prior-period reserve development.
→Humana led in enrollment growth. UnitedHealth showed stronger current financial execution within this comparison.

Short answer

Humana was the Medicare Advantage enrollment-growth leader among the major publicly traded health plans reviewed here. UnitedHealth reported stronger current margin execution. Humana's growth cannot be considered the strongest overall performance until the company shows that its new-member cohorts can be retained, managed effectively, and converted into durable Insurance segment margins.

Humana led the market in Medicare Advantage growth

Humana's individual Medicare Advantage membership reached approximately 6.45 million, an increase of about 23% from the prior year. Total Medicare Advantage membership reached 7.18 million. Total Medicare Advantage membership increased 23.8% year over year. Revenue increased 26.2% to $40.9 billion. Medicare Supplement membership increased 24.2%, while Prescription Drug Plan (PDP) premium revenue increased 74%.

That result stands apart from several major competitors:

Medicare membership direction among selected publicly traded health plans, Q2 2026.

Company	Medicare membership direction	Second-quarter result
Humana	Strong increase	Total Medicare Advantage membership increased 23.8% year over year
UnitedHealth	Planned reduction	Medicare Advantage membership declined by 965,000 since year-end 2025 as the company reduced exposure and redesigned benefits
Elevance Health	Reduction	Medicare Advantage membership declined approximately 16% year over year
Centene	Mixed	Medicare medical membership declined, while Prescription Drug Plan membership increased

Humana appears to have benefited from competitive plan design, stronger sales, improved retention, customer-service changes, and market exits or benefit reductions by competing plans.

For the distribution system, this is a significant achievement. Humana attracted and enrolled a large number of beneficiaries during a period when many insurers were deliberately limiting growth.

Medical costs tell a different part of the story

Humana's Insurance segment benefit ratio increased from 89.9% to 91.2%. This means that a larger share of premium revenue was used to pay medical claims and related expenses.

At the same time, Humana reduced its Insurance operating cost ratio from 8.3% to 7.1%. Higher revenue, added scale, and cost reductions helped lower administrative expenses as a percentage of revenue.

The two changes nearly offset each other:

→Benefit ratio deterioration: 130 basis points
→Operating cost improvement: 120 basis points
→Insurance operating margin: approximately 2.5% to 2.1%

Insurance revenue increased approximately 26%, but Insurance segment operating income increased only about 7%. Humana added substantial premium revenue, but higher medical costs limited how much of that growth reached operating income.

This does not make the growth unsuccessful. It shows that the financial value of the new membership has not yet been fully established.

UnitedHealth produced the stronger current financial result

UnitedHealth followed a different strategy. Its Medicare Advantage membership declined as the company adjusted benefits, pricing, and market participation. For a detailed look at those results, see UnitedHealth Group's Q2 2026 margin recovery.

UnitedHealthcare's second-quarter operating earnings increased from approximately $2.1 billion to $3.9 billion. Its operating margin increased from 2.4% to 4.6%. UnitedHealth also raised its full-year adjusted earnings guidance and said it expected 2026 Medicare margins above 3%.

UnitedHealth served fewer Medicare beneficiaries but generated better margins from the business it retained. The company attributed the improvement to pricing discipline, benefit changes, member mix, and medical-cost management.

Its results also included favorable prior-period reserve development. That support should be considered when assessing how much of the reported improvement represents an ongoing operating run rate.

The comparison shows two operating choices:

→Humana accepted near-term medical-cost and margin pressure to gain Medicare Advantage membership.
→UnitedHealth reduced membership while working to restore pricing and margin discipline.

Humana led in enrollment growth. UnitedHealth showed stronger current financial execution within this comparison.

Humana's new-member cohort will determine the outcome

Humana has disclosed that newly enrolled Medicare Advantage members currently have higher benefit ratios than retained members.

That is common in health insurance. A plan may initially have less complete clinical information about new members. New beneficiaries may also have delayed care needs, incomplete risk documentation, or limited participation in care-management programs.

New members can become more financially valuable as the plan develops better clinical information, closes care gaps, improves risk accuracy, and connects members with appropriate primary and preventive care.

That process takes time and depends on coordinated execution across enrollment, clinical operations, provider relationships, customer service, risk adjustment, quality, and finance.

Humana's results over the next several quarters should therefore be assessed using five measures.

Retention

High acquisition volume has limited long-term value if members leave after one year. Retention also affects continuity of care and the plan's ability to manage health needs over time.

Medical-cost performance by enrollment cohort

Humana should be able to show whether the 2026 member cohort's benefit ratio improves as those members mature. Aggregate results can hide material differences among new, retained, and longer-tenured members. Cohort-level visibility is necessary to determine whether the growth is becoming financially sustainable.

Participation in value-based care

Connections among Humana, CenterWell, and participating providers could improve care coordination and cost management. The measurable question is whether those relationships reduce avoidable utilization, support appropriate preventive care, and improve outcomes.

Star Ratings recovery

Humana continues to manage a material earnings headwind from its 2026 Star Ratings. Membership growth cannot fully compensate for weak quality-bonus economics.

Insurance operating margin

Revenue growth becomes financially durable when medical costs and administrative expenses produce an acceptable margin without creating access problems or avoidable friction for beneficiaries and providers.

Revenue growth requires context

Two figures from Humana's report deserve additional explanation.

The reported 22.8 million in total membership combines medical and specialty product memberships. Humana notes that a person may be represented in more than one product. The figure should not be interpreted as 22.8 million unique customers.

The 74% increase in Prescription Drug Plan premium revenue also reflects changes to Medicare Part D funding under the Inflation Reduction Act, along with membership growth. It is not a direct measure of a 74% improvement in underlying profitability.

There is also a reporting-basis issue in some summaries of the results. Comparing a 2025 Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) operating cost ratio of 11% with a 2026 adjusted ratio of 9.7% mixes two reporting bases.

The consistent consolidated comparisons are:

→11% to 9.8% on a Generally Accepted Accounting Principles basis
→10.9% to 9.7% on an adjusted basis

Was Humana the most successful?

The answer depends on how success is defined.

Humana was the Medicare Advantage enrollment winner among the companies reviewed here. It gained market share while major competitors reduced membership, and it lowered administrative expenses as a percentage of revenue.

UnitedHealth produced a stronger current combination of medical-cost performance, operating margin, earnings growth, and increased guidance. The favorable reserve development in UnitedHealth's results remains an important qualification.

Humana is making a longer-term bet. The company is accepting near-term pressure from new-member medical costs and its Star Ratings position with the expectation that the larger membership base will become more profitable over time.

The operating question is now clear: Can Humana retain those members, improve their clinical and financial performance, restore its Star Ratings, and convert enrollment growth into durable Insurance segment margins?

Membership reports what happened during enrollment. Cohort performance will show whether the growth created lasting value for the plan and better continuity of care for beneficiaries.

Questions health plan leaders may ask

Was Humana the best-performing health plan in the second quarter of 2026?

Humana was the Medicare Advantage enrollment-growth leader among the major publicly traded insurers reviewed in this analysis. It was not the unqualified financial-performance leader. UnitedHealth reported stronger current operating-margin improvement, while other insurers followed different strategies and reported results that are not directly comparable.

Which insurer led Medicare Advantage enrollment growth?

Humana led the companies reviewed here. Its total Medicare Advantage membership increased 23.8% year over year to approximately 7.18 million.

Why did Humana's margin not increase with its revenue?

Humana's Insurance segment revenue increased approximately 26%, but its benefit ratio increased from 89.9% to 91.2%. Lower administrative expenses offset most, but not all, of the medical-cost pressure. As a result, Insurance operating income grew much more slowly than revenue.

How did UnitedHealth's strategy differ from Humana's?

UnitedHealth reduced Medicare Advantage membership, adjusted benefits and pricing, and concentrated on restoring margin. Humana accepted greater near-term medical-cost pressure while expanding enrollment and market share.

What should health plan leaders monitor next?

The most useful measures are new-member retention, benefit-ratio development by enrollment cohort, participation in value-based care, Star Ratings recovery, administrative-cost discipline, and Insurance operating margin. These measures will show whether Humana's membership growth is becoming financially durable.

Sources and methodology

This analysis uses publicly reported company results and company-defined operating metrics. Definitions and segment structures differ among insurers, so the figures should not be treated as a perfectly like-for-like ranking.

Related analysis

UnitedHealth Group's Q2 Recovery Came With a Clear Tradeoff
UnitedHealth Group restored earnings in Q2 2026 while revenue remained flat and membership declined.
What Elevance Health's Q2 2026 Results Reveal About Payer Performance
Elevance Health's Q2 2026 operating revenue increased 0.8%, while operating margin fell 140 basis points.

Farzin Espahani

Farzin Espahani advises healthcare and insurance organizations on operating performance, growth economics, Medicare distribution, compliance, and responsible technology implementation.

This article provides independent operational analysis based on publicly reported company results. It is not investment advice.

Interested in how VHealth advises health plans on operating performance and Medicare distribution strategy?

Schedule a Conversation Advisory Areas