Managed Care
Eighteen Health Plans Score 5 Stars in NCQA 2026 Ratings, No For-Profits Included
Eighteen health plans achieved perfect 5-star ratings in NCQA's 2026 standards ratings, up from 11 in the previous cycle. None of the top-scoring plans are for-profit entities. The ratings measure plan performance across quality, access, and member experience metrics. The results highlight a continuing performance gap between nonprofit and for-profit health plans on nationally standardized quality measures.
Why it mattersMedicaid managed care organizations (MCOs) increasingly face quality benchmarking tied to NCQA ratings, and the absence of for-profit plans at the top performance tier may influence state procurement decisions and auto-assignment policies in competitive markets.