TL;DR
Sunshine State Health Plan, Inc. filed a discontinuation notice for its Florida Marketplace products, so they end with 2026. Because Sunshine State and Ambetter are both Centene companies, members are being transitioned to an Ambetter plan for 2027 unless they pick something else. Centene's continuing Florida entity filed the smallest proposed increase in the state, about 3.9%, but a transition is still a new plan with a new plan ID, so check the network, the drug list, and the premium on the letter, and enroll in your own choice by December 15 if it does not fit.
A transition letter from a carrier you already have is easy to file away. This one deserves ten minutes, because the plan on the other side of it is a different contract issued by a different legal entity, even though the name on the ID card will look familiar.
What is actually happening
Quick answer: Sunshine State Health Plan, Inc., one of the Centene companies that sold Ambetter-branded Marketplace plans in Florida, has filed a discontinuation notice, so its products end on December 31, 2026. Centene continues in the Florida Marketplace through its other entities, and healthinsurance.org's Florida guide and the filing review at ACA Signups both report that Sunshine State members will be transitioned to an Ambetter plan for 2027 if they do not choose a different one.
Ambetter Health plans in Florida are underwritten by more than one Centene company, including Celtic Insurance Company and Centene Venture Company Florida. The 2027 rate filing for Centene Venture Company Florida proposed an average increase of about 3.9%, the lowest of any Florida carrier that filed. That is an average across its plans and counties, not a promise about yours, and the state's Office of Insurance Regulation had not finalized 2027 rates when this was written.
What changes and what does not
- Changes: the legal issuer of your policy, the plan ID, and potentially the premium, the deductible, the network, and the drug list. A transition is not a renewal. It is enrollment in a plan the carrier picked for you.
- Does not change: your 2026 coverage, which runs through December 31, and your ability to shop the whole county menu between November 1 and January 15 like anyone else.
- Not guaranteed to change, so check: whether your doctors, your hospital, and your prescriptions carry over. Ambetter's Florida plans have historically been priced toward the lower end of the market with narrower HMO-style networks, which is exactly why the directory check matters.
Five things to check on the transition letter
- The plan name and metal level. Confirm you are being moved to the same tier, Bronze to Bronze, Silver to Silver. A tier change moves your deductible and your credit math.
- The premium before the credit. The letter shows the 2027 rate. Compare it to what you pay now and to the other plans at the same tier on the county menu.
- The credit estimate. It is based on last year's income. If 2027 will be different, update the application before you accept anything. The credit stops at about $63,840 for one person and $132,000 for a family of four.
- The network. Search the new plan's directory for every doctor and the hospital you actually use. Do not assume a same-brand plan carries the same contracts.
- The formulary. Look up each prescription. Tier changes and prior-authorization rules are where transitions cost people money in February.
Your three options
Quick answer: Accept the Ambetter transition if the letter checks out. Pick a different Marketplace plan from the county menu if it does not. Or, if everyone in the household is healthy and your income is above the credit line, compare a medically underwritten plan, which is priced on your health, can be applied for any month, and is often less than full Marketplace price, with the trade-off that it can decline or exclude conditions and is not ACA-compliant.
Whichever you choose, the deadline is the same. Open enrollment for 2027 coverage runs November 1, 2026 through January 15, 2027, and December 15 is the last day for a January 1 start. Enroll later and coverage begins February 1.
The rest of the Florida picture
Sunshine State is one of several 2027 changes. Cigna is leaving the Marketplace in Florida and ten other states, and the filing review at ACA Signups and the KFF tracker, as reported by the Florida Phoenix, list Molina Healthcare of Florida and Community Care Network (22 Health, Broward County) as leaving too. Florida Blue's two entities filed increases of about 26% and 9.8%. The full lineup by county is in our 2027 Florida carrier guide.
If you want one licensed Florida broker to read the transition letter with you, run the directory checks, and put the underwritten number next to it, start on our Florida self-employed page. One call, real numbers, never sold.
Key Takeaway
Sunshine State Health Plan ends with 2026 and Centene moves its members to Ambetter unless they choose otherwise. Treat the letter as a new plan, not a renewal: check the tier, the premium, the credit estimate, the network, and the drug list, then accept it, replace it, or compare an underwritten plan, all by December 15.
Questions readers ask about this
Is Sunshine State Health Plan going out of business?
Its Florida Marketplace products are being discontinued at the end of 2026. Sunshine State is a Centene company, and Centene continues to sell Ambetter plans in Florida through its other entities, so members are being transitioned to Ambetter rather than left without a plan.
Do I have to do anything to keep coverage in 2027?
If the transition letter checks out, no. You will be moved to the Ambetter plan named in the letter for January 1. If the network, drug list, premium, or tier does not fit, you have until December 15 to pick something else for a January 1 start.
Will my doctors carry over to the Ambetter plan?
Not automatically. Same brand does not mean same contracts. Search the new plan's provider directory for each doctor and your hospital before you accept the transition.
Is Ambetter cheaper than other Florida carriers for 2027?
Centene Venture Company Florida proposed the smallest average increase among Florida filers, about 3.9%, but averages are not quotes. Compare the letter's premium to the other plans at your tier in your county.
What if I earn too much for a premium tax credit?
Then the full 2027 premium is yours either way, and a healthy household should compare a medically underwritten plan next to the Marketplace number. It prices on health, can be applied for any month, and can decline or exclude conditions, so we read the exclusions out loud before anyone signs.
What is the deadline?
December 15, 2026 for coverage starting January 1, 2027. The Marketplace window stays open through January 15, but later enrollments start February 1.
- healthinsurance.org: Florida Health Insurance Marketplace guide (2027 carrier changes and proposed rate table)
- ACA Signups: Florida 2027 rate filings (+15.3% unweighted, five carriers exiting)
- Ambetter from Sunshine Health: Florida plans and issuing entities
- Florida Phoenix (Sept. 11, 2026): 2027 rate requests and the five carriers leaving, citing KFF
- HealthCare.gov: dates and deadlines (November 1 to January 15; December 15 for a January 1 start)
- HHS ASPE: 2026 poverty guidelines ($15,960 single, $33,000 family of four)
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