Medicare Advantage

Did Your ANOC Arrive? Here's Your Chandler AEP Checklist

For 2027, Chandler is looking at 92 Medicare Advantage plans: 17 new, 13 gone since 2026, and 33 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 13 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Maricopa County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

CHANDLER, Ariz. — The window to change your Medicare coverage for 2027 is open now and closes December 7, 2026. If you live in Chandler and you have a Medicare Advantage plan or a stand-alone Part D drug plan, this is the one stretch of the year when you can switch, drop or pick up coverage without needing a special reason. Do nothing and your current plan rolls into 2027 with whatever changes its insurer has made — which is exactly why a short review before the deadline is worth the time.

Here is a plain checklist built for Chandler residents, with the documents to pull, the people to call, and the local numbers that frame your choices.

What is the Medicare Annual Enrollment deadline for 2027 coverage in Chandler?

The deadline is December 7, 2026. The Annual Enrollment Period opened October 15, 2026, and anything you change — switching Medicare Advantage plans, moving between Original Medicare and Advantage, or picking a new Part D drug plan — begins January 1, 2027. If you do nothing, your current plan simply renews for 2027 with the updates described in its Annual Notice of Change.

One more date to keep in your back pocket: the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period runs January 1 – March 31, 2027. If you are already in an Advantage plan on Jan. 1 and realize it isn't working, you get one chance in that window to switch to a different Advantage plan or go back to Original Medicare.

How do I read my Annual Notice of Change before Dec. 7?

Pull out the Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) your plan mailed (or emailed) in late September. It is a side-by-side of your 2026 plan versus your 2027 plan. Read these lines first:

• Monthly premium for 2027.
• Deductible and copays for primary care, specialists, labs, imaging, and hospital stays.
• Maximum out-of-pocket limit for medical care.
• Drug tiers and the drug deductible.
• Extra benefits (dental, vision, hearing, OTC, fitness, transportation) — these are the ones carriers quietly trim.
• Provider network changes called out in the notice.

If anything in the ANOC surprises you, that is your signal to compare other plans before December 7.

How do I check whether my Chandler doctors and hospitals are in next year's network?

Do not assume. Networks are set plan by plan and year by year, so a doctor in network in 2026 may not be in 2027. For each doctor, specialist, and hospital you use — including Chandler Regional Medical Center, Banner Ocotillo, Dignity Health East Valley sites and the Mayo Clinic campuses many East Valley residents rely on — do two things:

1. Look up the provider in the plan's 2027 online provider directory on the insurer's website (not the 2026 directory). 2. Call the doctor's office and ask, by name, which 2027 plans they will accept. Front-desk staff usually know before the directory updates.

If a plan you are considering does not cover a provider you want to keep, that answers the question for you.

How do I check my prescriptions against a 2027 Part D plan?

The fastest tool is the Medicare Plan Finder at Medicare.gov. Enter your ZIP code and your drug list exactly — names, doses, and quantities — and it will show each plan's 2027 drug cost, pharmacy restrictions and tier placement for your medications. A few things to confirm:

• Each drug is still on the plan's formulary for 2027.
• The tier (and your copay) has not jumped.
• Your preferred Chandler pharmacy is a preferred pharmacy — the difference between preferred and standard can be real.
• No new prior authorization or step therapy requirement blocks a drug you take.

Two program-level facts to anchor your math: in 2027, the Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,400 and the maximum Part D deductible is $700. Both are higher than 2026's $2,100 cap and $615 deductible. The optional Medicare Prescription Payment Plan is still available if you'd rather spread drug costs across the calendar year instead of paying them at the counter.

How many Medicare Advantage plans and carriers does Maricopa County have for 2027?

Chandler is in Maricopa County, where the 2026 CMS Landscape file lists 88 Medicare Advantage plans from 16 carriers, including 36 Special Needs Plans and 82 plans that include drug coverage. By type, that breaks down to 55 HMOs, 16 HMO-POS and 17 PPOs. The 2027 plan list for the county goes live on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder in October 2026 — expect the carrier roster and plan counts to shift a bit.

The carriers offering Advantage plans in Maricopa County for 2026 are Aetna (CVS Health), Alignment Health Plan, Banner Medicare Advantage, Blue Cross Blue Shield (HCSC), Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, Centene (WellCare), Devoted Health, Elevance Health (Anthem), eternalHealth, Gold Kidney Health Plan, Humana, Mercy Care Advantage, Molina Healthcare of Arizona, SCAN Health Plan, UnitedHealthcare, and Verda Health Plan of Arizona. The table below lists every plan available in the county; use it as a starting map, then run your own list through Plan Finder.

What else should be on my before-Dec. 7 checklist?

A few items that catch Chandler readers out every year:

• Confirm your plan is being offered in 2027. If it isn't, you have a Special Enrollment Period, but you still want to act in AEP.
• Check IRMAA. If your income has changed, your 2027 Part B and Part D surcharges may change too. CMS publishes the 2027 Part B premium, deductible and IRMAA brackets later this fall — usually in November.
• If you have Original Medicare + a Medigap plan, your Medigap doesn't renew through AEP; only your Part D plan does. Review the Part D side.
• Save your paperwork. Write down the plan name, the confirmation number, and the date you enrolled.
• Call for help. 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY 1-877-486-2048) is open 24/7, and Medicare.gov lets you do everything online with a secure account.