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Allwell sells plans under the Wellcare name. It falls behind other providers in ratings for quality and member experience.
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Kate Ashford, CSA® Lead Writer | Medicare, retirement, personal finance
Kate Ashford is a writer and NerdWallet authority on Medicare. She is a certified senior advisor (CSA)® and has more than 20 years of experience writing about personal finance. Previously, she was a freelance writer for both consumer and business publications, and her work has been published by the BBC, Forbes, Money, AARP, LearnVest and Parents, among others. She has a degree from the University of Virginia and a master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern’s Medill School of Journalism. Kate has appeared as a Medicare expert on the PennyWise podcast by Lee Enterprises, and she's been quoted in national publications including Healthline, Real Simple and SingleCare. She is based in New York.
Holly Carey joined NerdWallet in 2021 as an editor on the team responsible for expanding content to additional topics within personal finance. She currently leads the Medicare team. Previously, Holly wrote and edited content and developed digital media strategies as a public affairs officer for the U.S. Navy. She is based in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
The bottom line: Allwell Medicare Advantage may offer some nice benefits, but star ratings and member experience scores are below average, and plans are available in only 11 states.
Jump to: Full Review
Allwell
3.44
CMS Star RatingAverage Medicare star rating, weighted by enrollment. Star ratings are determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
We will connect you with Medicare companies based on the information you provide. They will help you find a plan that suits your needs. If you prefer to speak to a licensed insurance agent right away, please call the number listed below.
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
Allwell Medicare Advantage pros and cons
Pros
Benefits card: Some Wellcare by Allwell plans include the Spendables card, which comes preloaded with funds members can use on extra benefits, depending on the plan.
Part B premium coverage: Some plans include a Giveback benefit that refunds some or all of your Medicare Part B premium.
Cons
Star ratings: For 2025, the average star rating from Medicare for Wellcare by Allwell plans, weighted by enrollment, is 3.44 stars, which is lower than the average for all providers.
Member discontent: Allwell underperforms on measures of member experience, including metrics for customer service and care coordination.
State coverage: Allwell Medicare Advantage plans are available in only 11 states.
Compare against other providers
UnitedHealthcare
3.93
CMS Star RatingAverage Medicare star rating, weighted by enrollment. Star ratings are determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
CMS Star RatingAverage Medicare star rating, weighted by enrollment. Star ratings are determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
We will connect you with Medicare companies based on the information you provide. They will help you find a plan that suits your needs. If you prefer to speak to a licensed insurance agent right away, please call the number listed below.
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
CMS Star RatingAverage Medicare star rating, weighted by enrollment. Star ratings are determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
We will connect you with Medicare companies based on the information you provide. They will help you find a plan that suits your needs. If you prefer to speak to a licensed insurance agent right away, please call the number listed below.
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
CMS Star RatingAverage Medicare star rating, weighted by enrollment. Star ratings are determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
We will connect you with Medicare companies based on the information you provide. They will help you find a plan that suits your needs. If you prefer to speak to a licensed insurance agent right away, please call the number listed below.
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
CMS Star RatingAverage Medicare star rating, weighted by enrollment. Star ratings are determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
CMS Star RatingAverage Medicare star rating, weighted by enrollment. Star ratings are determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
We will connect you with Medicare companies based on the information you provide. They will help you find a plan that suits your needs. If you prefer to speak to a licensed insurance agent right away, please call the number listed below.
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
M-F 9AM-9PM, Sat 10AM-6PM ET
Speak to a licensed insurance agent on askchapter.org
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
NerdWallet’s Medicare content, including articles, reviews and recommendations, is produced by a team of writers and editors who specialize in Medicare. Their work has appeared in The Associated Press, Washington Post, Nasdaq, MSN, MarketWatch, Yahoo! Finance and other national and regional media outlets. They have been cited in publications including Healthline, and appeared on NerdWallet's "Smart Money" podcast.
Wellcare by Allwell Medicare star ratings
Average star rating, weighted by enrollment: 3.44
Allwell Medicare Advantage plans are rated well below the industry average, with an average rating of 3.44 stars out of 5 from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for 2025, weighted by enrollment. For comparison, the average weighted star rating for plans from all providers is 3.95.
There is only one 2025 Wellcare by Allwell plan rated 4 stars. The rest of the provider's plans are rated 3.5 stars or lower
CMS maintains its own star ratings, which rank each plan from best (5 stars) to worst (1 star). The agency bases these ratings on plans’ quality of care and measurements of customer satisfaction, and ratings may change from year to year.
Medicare star ratings are typically released once per year, but CMS recalculated its 2025 star ratings for Wellcare by Allwell’s parent company, Centene, in December 2024. Updates took place after multiple lawsuits from insurance companies alleging that CMS improperly calculated the 2025 star ratings. NerdWallet has updated this article accordingly.
What does Allwell Medicare Advantage cost?
In 2025, nearly 7 in 10 standard Wellcare by Allwell plans with prescription drug coverage have no premium
. You'll still be responsible for paying your Medicare Part B premium, which is $174.70 per month in 2024 ($185 in 2025).
(Most people pay this standard Part B amount, but if your income is above a certain threshold, you’ll pay the income-related monthly adjustment amount (IRMAA). Some Medicare Advantage plans cover part or all of your Part B premium.)
Requirements for copays, coinsurance and deductibles vary depending on your plan, location and the services you use. Other out-of-pocket costs to consider include:
Whether the plan covers any part of your monthly Medicare Part B premium.
The plan’s yearly deductibles and any other deductibles, such as a drug deductible.
Copayments and/or coinsurance for each visit or service. For instance, there may be a $10 copay for seeing your primary doctor and a $45 copay for seeing a specialist.
The plan’s in-network and out-of-network out-of-pocket maximums.
Whether your medical providers are in-network or out-of-network, or how often you may go out of network for care.
Whether you require extra benefits, and if the plan charges for them.
Here are examples of Wellcare by Allwell Medicare Advantage costs for three plans in a mid-range city:
Wellcare by Allwell Medicare Advantage plan
Pricing
Wellcare Simple Open (PPO)
Monthly premium: $0.
Deductible: None.
Out-of-pocket max: $3,900 in-network.
Copays:
Primary care: $0.
Specialist: $25.
Emergency care: $140.
Inpatient hospital: $350.*
Dental allowance: $1,000.
Wellcare Simple (HMO-POS)
Monthly premium: $0.
Deductible: None.
Out-of-pocket max: $5,000.
Copays:
Primary care: $0.
Specialist: $25.
Emergency care: $125.
Inpatient hospital: $350.*
Dental allowance: $1,000.
Wellcare Patriot Giveback Open (PPO)
Monthly premium: $0.
Deductible: None.
Out-of-pocket max: $4,400 in-network.
Copays:
Primary care: $0.
Specialist: $35.
Emergency care: $125.
Inpatient hospital: $375.**
Dental allowance: $1,500.
Selected plans are available in ZIP code 66013.
*Inpatient hospital copay is per day for days 1-7.**Inpatient hospital copay is per day for days 1-6.
To get a sense of costs, use Medicare’s plan finding tool to compare information among available plans in your area. You can select by insurance carrier to see only Allwell plans, or compare across carriers.
Wellcare by Allwell Medicare Advantage plan types
Allwell offers Medicare Advantage prescription drug plans as well as Medicare Advantage plans without drug coverage.
Plan availability may vary by county. Other plan offerings may include the following types:
HMO plans
A health maintenance organization (HMO) generally requires that you use a specific network of doctors and hospitals. You may need a referral from your primary doctor in order to see a specialist, and out-of-network benefits are usually very limited.
PPO plans
Preferred provider organization (PPO) plans provide the most freedom, allowing you to see any provider that accepts the insurance. You may not need to choose a primary doctor, and you don’t need referrals to see specialists. You can seek out-of-network care, although it may cost more than seeing an in-network doctor.
SNPs
Special needs plans (SNPs) restrict membership to people with certain diseases or characteristics. Hence, the benefits, network and drug formularies are tailored to the needs of those members. Allwell offers two types of SNPs:
Chronic Condition SNP: For people with one or more specific conditions, such as chronic heart failure, congestive heart failure or diabetes.
Dual-Eligible SNP: For people who are entitled to Medicare and who also qualify for assistance from a state Medicaid program.
Third-party ratings
J.D. Power Ranking
In its 2024 U.S. Medicare Advantage Study — the 10th it’s done so far — J.D. Power measured member satisfaction with Medicare Advantage plans based on eight factors ranging from level of trust to how well a provider resolves problems or complaints. The study was fielded in the 10 biggest state Medicare markets, and here’s how Wellcare (Allwell's brand) ranked in the states where it had enough market share to be considered
Wellcare by Allwell offers Medicare Advantage plans in 11 states.
Centene, Allwell’s parent company, is the fifth-largest Medicare Advantage provider among for-profit health plans. Allwell-branded plans cover about 170,000 Medicare beneficiaries
Allwell is a Medicare brand of Centene Corp., which was founded in 1984. In 2020, Centene acquired Wellcare, and in 2022, Allwell became a Medicare brand under the Wellcare name. Centene headquarters are in St. Louis, Missouri. Centene offers coverage through Medicaid, Medicare Advantage and Medicare Part D plans, as well as individual and family coverage through the health insurance marketplace.
Get more information below about some of the major Medicare Advantage providers. These insurers offer plans in most states. The plans you can choose from will depend on your ZIP code and county.
What are the plan’s costs? Do you understand what the plan’s premium, deductibles, copays and/or coinsurance will be? Can you afford them?
Is your doctor in-network? If you have a preferred medical provider or providers, make sure they participate in the plan’s network.
Are your prescriptions covered? If you’re on medication, it’s crucial to understand how the plan covers it. What tier are your prescription drugs on, and are there any coverage rules that apply to them?
Is there dental coverage? Does the plan offer routine coverage for vision, dental and hearing needs?
Are there extras? Does the plan offer any extra benefits, such as fitness memberships, transportation benefits or meal delivery?
If you have additional questions about Medicare, visit Medicare.gov or call 800-MEDICARE (800-633-4227, TTY 877-486-2048).
Allwell
3.44
CMS Star RatingAverage Medicare star rating, weighted by enrollment. Star ratings are determined by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
Allwell is a brand of Wellcare, and Wellcare by Allwell plans are available in only 11 states. The company performs below average on star ratings and member experience metrics.
We will connect you with Medicare companies based on the information you provide. They will help you find a plan that suits your needs. If you prefer to speak to a licensed insurance agent right away, please call the number listed below.
States available
11 states
Members in high-rated plansPercentage of members who are in rated contracts with a Medicare star rating of 4 or higher.
Low (49% or less)
Member experienceThe average of CMS' star ratings for quality measures in the domain "Member Experience with the Health Plan," weighted by contract enrollment.
3.04 (Below average)
IS THIS PROVIDER AVAILABLE IN MY STATE?
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
Pros
Parent company Centene is the fifth-largest for-profit Medicare Advantage provider.
Some plans include the Spendables card, which is preloaded with funds members can use on extra benefits.
Cons
Lower-than-average star ratings from CMS.
Below-average ratings for member experience metrics such as customer service and care coordination.
Wellcare by Allwell plans are available in only 11 states.
States available
11 states
Members in high-rated plansPercentage of members who are in rated contracts with a Medicare star rating of 4 or higher.
Low (49% or less)
Member experienceThe average of CMS' star ratings for quality measures in the domain "Member Experience with the Health Plan," weighted by contract enrollment.
3.04 (Below average)
IS THIS PROVIDER AVAILABLE IN MY STATE?
Plan availability is determined by ZIP code. While a plan may be available in your state, it may not be offered in your specific county. Please verify plan availability with a licensed insurance agent.
PROS & CONS
Pros
Parent company Centene is the fifth-largest for-profit Medicare Advantage provider.
Some plans include the Spendables card, which is preloaded with funds members can use on extra benefits.
Cons
Lower-than-average star ratings from CMS.
Below-average ratings for member experience metrics such as customer service and care coordination.
Wellcare by Allwell plans are available in only 11 states.