Medicare Advantage

Gilbert's 17 brand-new Medicare Advantage plans for 2027: how to check one before you switch

Maricopa County has 92 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 13 plans are not coming back, 17 are new, and 33 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 13 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Gilbert, not which plan to pick.

GILBERT, Ariz. — When the Medicare Advantage menu for 2027 opens on October 15, 2026, Gilbert shoppers will see 17 plans that did not exist in Maricopa County a year earlier. A brand-new plan can look appealing on paper, but it comes with a catch worth knowing before December 7: no track record yet. Here is what is new, who is offering it, and how to vet any of these plans against your own doctors and prescriptions.

What is actually new in Gilbert's Medicare Advantage lineup for 2027?

For 2027, 17 of the 92 Medicare Advantage plans offered in Maricopa County are new — meaning they were not sold here in 2026. Gilbert sits inside Maricopa County, which is how Medicare sets plan availability, so these are the plans a Gilbert resident could choose from.

Nine carriers are introducing them: Aetna (CVS Health), Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, Centene (WellCare), Devoted Health, Elevance Health (Anthem), Gold Kidney Health Plan, Humana, SCAN Health Plan and UnitedHealthcare. The full table below lists every new plan with its type and whether it includes drug coverage.

Which carriers added new Medicare Advantage plans in Maricopa County for 2027?

Here is the carrier-by-carrier count of new 2027 plans in Maricopa County, in alphabetical order:

• Aetna (CVS Health): 2 new plans — Aetna Medicare Chronic Care (HMO C-SNP) and Aetna Medicare Prime (HMO).
• Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona: 1 new plan — Blue Best Life Select (HMO).
• Centene (WellCare): 1 new plan — Wellcare Arizona Complete Health Dual Liberty Sync (HMO D-SNP).
• Devoted Health: 6 new plans — DEVOTED C-SNP ENHANCED 092 AZ (HMO C-SNP), DEVOTED C-SNP GIVEBACK EXTRAS 104 AZ (HMO C-SNP), DEVOTED C-SNP PLUS 093 AZ (HMO C-SNP), DEVOTED CORE 090 AZ (HMO), DEVOTED GIVEBACK 091 AZ (HMO) and DEVOTED GIVEBACK EXTRAS 105 AZ (HMO).
• Elevance Health (Anthem): 1 new plan — Wellpoint I CareMore Home Care (HMO I-SNP).
• Gold Kidney Health Plan: 1 new plan — Gold Dialysis Premier (HMO-POS C-SNP).
• Humana: 1 new plan — Humana Value Choice (PPO).
• SCAN Health Plan: 3 new plans — SCAN DaVita Dialysis Care Complete (HMO-POS C-SNP), SCAN Walmart Medicare Advantage (HMO) and SCAN Walmart Medicare Complete (HMO C-SNP).
• UnitedHealthcare: 1 new plan — AARP Medicare Advantage Patriot No Rx AZ-MA2 (HMO-POS).

The table below shows each plan with its type and drug-coverage status.

What plan types and Special Needs Plans are among Gilbert's new 2027 options?

Most of the new plans are HMOs or HMO-POS plans; one is a PPO (Humana Value Choice).

A large share are Special Needs Plans (SNPs), which only accept members who fit a specific category. Among the 17 new plans:

• Chronic Condition SNPs (C-SNPs), for people with qualifying conditions like diabetes, heart disease or kidney disease: Aetna Medicare Chronic Care, DEVOTED C-SNP ENHANCED 092 AZ, DEVOTED C-SNP GIVEBACK EXTRAS 104 AZ, DEVOTED C-SNP PLUS 093 AZ, Gold Dialysis Premier, SCAN DaVita Dialysis Care Complete and SCAN Walmart Medicare Complete.
• Dual-Eligible SNPs (D-SNPs), for people with both Medicare and Medicaid: Wellcare Arizona Complete Health Dual Liberty Sync.
• Institutional SNPs (I-SNPs), generally for people who live in a nursing home or need that level of care: Wellpoint I CareMore Home Care.

If you do not meet the SNP's eligibility rule, you cannot enroll in that plan, even if the benefits sound attractive.

Do the new 2027 Medicare Advantage plans in Gilbert include drug coverage?

Sixteen of the 17 new plans include Part D prescription drug coverage. The one exception is AARP Medicare Advantage Patriot No Rx AZ-MA2 (HMO-POS) from UnitedHealthcare, which is a Medicare Advantage-only plan without drug coverage.

That matters: if you choose a Medicare Advantage plan without drug coverage, in most cases you cannot add a standalone Part D plan on the side — the two usually have to come as a package. The exception is some PPO and private-fee-for-service designs. The Medicare Plan Finder flags this clearly when you shop.

How is a brand-new Medicare Advantage plan different from a renewing one?

A new plan has no Star Rating yet. Medicare's Star Ratings reflect prior-year performance on things like customer service, member complaints and clinical quality, and a plan needs a history to be scored. New plans typically appear without a rating for their first years. That is a program fact — not a reason to pick or skip the plan, just something to be aware of.

A new plan is also building out its provider network and pharmacy relationships at the same time it opens for sale. The network and formulary (drug list) may look complete in the directory, but neither you nor your doctor has used them yet. Renewing plans, by contrast, have a track record you — and your pharmacist — can draw on.

How do I check a 2027 plan against my doctors and prescriptions before December 7?

Use medicare.gov's Plan Finder, which pulls directly from each insurer's filings. The steps:

1. Go to medicare.gov and start a plan search with your Gilbert ZIP code. 2. Add your prescriptions, with dose and quantity, and pick your preferred pharmacy. The tool will show estimated full-year drug costs under each plan. 3. Click into any plan that interests you and look up each of your doctors and specialists in that plan's provider directory. Confirm with the office directly — directories can lag. 4. For a new 2027 plan, call the insurer's member services line (listed on the plan page) and ask whether your specific hospital, doctor group and preferred pharmacy are in-network for 2027. 5. If you take specialty or high-cost drugs, check the formulary for the drug's tier, any prior authorization and any step therapy requirement.

You have until December 7, 2026 to make a change that takes effect January 1, 2027. If you do nothing, your current plan renews for 2027 as long as it is still offered — but you should still read the Annual Notice of Change your insurer mailed in September, because premiums, copays, drug lists and networks can shift from one year to the next.

What else is changing for 2027 that could matter?

Two Part D figures are already confirmed for 2027: the out-of-pocket cap on covered prescription drugs rises to $2,400 (up from $2,100 in 2026), and the maximum Part D deductible a plan can charge rises to $700 (up from $615 in 2026). The 2027 Part B premium, Part B deductible and IRMAA income brackets have not been announced yet; CMS typically publishes them later in the fall.