How retailer partnerships shape co-branded Medicare Advantage plans: Costco, Kroger and insurers

Retailers enter the Medicare Advantage market with co-branded deals

In August, SCAN Health Plan announced a partnership with Costco Wholesale Corp. to sell insurance products for older adults. The collaboration joins a small but growing set of retailer–insurer co-branded arrangements in the Medicare Advantage space.

Costco’s entry is not unique. The source notes that Kroger previously worked with Select Health and Priority Health on co-branded Medicare Advantage plans that were slated to launch in 2023 and 2024. Public-facing websites and company announcements outlined those Kroger relationships, according to the source.

Why retailer partnerships are getting attention

Retailers bring several potential advantages to insurance partnerships: broad consumer reach, established brand recognition among older shoppers, and physical store footprints that can serve as touchpoints for marketing or customer service. For insurers, a co-branded relationship can offer an alternative distribution channel and a way to differentiate plan offerings.

The source frames Costco’s agreement with SCAN and Kroger’s prior work with Select Health and Priority Health as part of this broader commercial trend. However, the article does not provide performance metrics, enrollment figures, or outcome data that would allow direct assessment of how successful co-branded Medicare Advantage plans have been to date.

What the source reported — and what it did not

The article reports these concrete items:

• In August, SCAN Health Plan announced a partnership with Costco Wholesale Corp. to sell insurance products for older adults.
• Kroger has collaborated with Select Health and Priority Health on co-branded Medicare Advantage plans slated for 2023 and 2024.

The source did not report several details that readers often seek when evaluating such partnerships. Missing information includes:

• Specific plan designs, benefit packages, or pricing tied to the Costco–SCAN or Kroger arrangements.
• Geographic markets or states where the co-branded plans will be offered.
• Projected or actual enrollment numbers, targets, or timelines beyond the 2023–2024 reference for Kroger’s plans.
• Financial terms, revenue-sharing arrangements, marketing commitments, or investments from the retailer or insurer.
• Operational details such as whether stores will serve as enrollment centers, provide in-person assistance, or host health-related services for plan members.
• Comparative performance data showing how co-branded Medicare Advantage plans have performed relative to traditional MA plans.

Because the source did not include these items, readers should treat the reported announcements as high-level news of partnerships rather than comprehensive accounts of plan strategy or expected market impact.

Context: why this matters for older consumers and insurers

Co-branded plans can influence how older adults shop for Medicare coverage. A recognizable retail brand may make it easier for some consumers to identify and trust a plan, and retailers can offer promotional opportunities or in-store enrollment assistance that differ from traditional broker or mail-based channels.

For insurers, partnerships with retailers represent a distribution strategy that could help reach undecided or underserved populations. They also create co-marketing opportunities and may shape benefit design if a retailer seeks to bundle services, discounts, or ancillary offerings tied to its own products.

The source points to Kroger’s earlier work and SCAN’s deal with Costco as examples, but it does not provide outcomes or metrics showing whether these factors translated into measurable advantages.

What to watch next (based on the limits of the reported information)

The source does not outline next steps in detail, so the following are logical developments to monitor that were not reported:

• Announcements from SCAN, Costco, Select Health, Priority Health or Kroger about plan benefits, pricing, and geographic rollout.
• Enrollment figures and early performance data after plans open to beneficiaries.
• Any public filings, press releases or regulatory documents that disclose financial terms or operational arrangements.
• Evidence that retail-branded plans change consumer behavior, for instance by increasing enrollment among populations that previously had lower MA participation.

Until such specifics are released by the companies or regulators, the available reporting is limited to confirmation that these retail–insurer partnerships exist and the stated timing for Kroger’s co-branded plans. The source did not report additional details on implementation, measurements of success, or market impact.

Bottom line

The article reports recent and prior retailer collaborations with Medicare Advantage insurers — notably SCAN’s August partnership with Costco and Kroger’s earlier partnerships with Select Health and Priority Health for 2023 and 2024. Beyond those announcements, the source offered little public detail on plan characteristics, financials, or outcomes. Readers seeking a fuller picture will need to look for subsequent disclosures from the companies or regulatory filings that provide plan designs, enrollment data and terms of the partnerships.