Medicare Advantage

Before Dec 7: Glendale's 2027 Medicare review steps

For 2027, Glendale 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.

Glendale, Ariz. — Fall 2026. The envelope that matters most this season may already be on your kitchen counter. If you have a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan, your carrier sent an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) by late September spelling out what will be different about your plan in 2027. Annual Enrollment runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and anything you decide in that window takes effect January 1.

The checklist below is built for Glendale residents: what to read in the ANOC, how to re-check your doctors, hospitals and prescriptions against next year's version of the plan, and how to see your full set of choices in Maricopa County.

What is the Annual Notice of Change and when should Glendale residents read it?

The ANOC is the document your Medicare Advantage or Part D plan sends every fall that lists exactly what will be different in the next plan year. Carriers are required to deliver it by September 30, so if you are enrolled in a plan, you should already have one for 2027.

Read it before December 7. The ANOC is the single clearest source for whether your premium, deductible, drug tiers, copays, provider network or extra benefits are shifting on January 1. If you cannot find the paper copy, your plan's member portal has it, and 1-800-MEDICARE can point you to it.

What should I check line by line in my 2027 ANOC?

Compare each section of the ANOC to what you pay and use today. The front of the document usually has a side-by-side table — that is the fastest place to spot changes.

Work down this list:

• Monthly premium for 2027 versus 2026.
• Medical deductible and drug deductible (the Part D maximum deductible rises to $700 in 2027, up from $615 in 2026).
• Primary care, specialist and urgent care copays.
• Hospital inpatient cost-sharing per stay.
• Drug tiers and the pharmacy network — a drug can move tiers, and a preferred pharmacy can become standard.
• Extra benefits (dental, vision, hearing, OTC allowance, fitness, transportation): check both whether they still exist and what the limits are.
• Maximum out-of-pocket for medical services.
• Part D out-of-pocket cap, which rises to $2,400 in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026) and applies across any Part D plan.

If your plan is being discontinued for 2027, the ANOC will say so plainly, and you will have a Special Enrollment Period to choose something else.

How do I check that my doctors, hospital and drugs are still covered in 2027?

Do three separate checks, because a plan that worked in 2026 can look different on January 1.

1. Doctors and hospitals. Call each provider's office and ask whether they will be in-network for your specific plan in 2027 — not just whether they "take Medicare." Glendale residents often use systems like Banner Health, HonorHealth, Abrazo and Dignity Health; network status is set contract by contract and can change at year end. 2. Prescriptions. Pull your current medication list, then check it against the 2027 formulary for any plan you are considering. Watch for tier changes, new prior authorization or step therapy, and quantity limits. 3. Pharmacy. Confirm your pharmacy is still "preferred" under the 2027 plan, since cost-sharing can differ between preferred and standard pharmacies.

The Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov lets you enter your drugs and preferred pharmacy and will show estimated yearly drug cost for each plan offered in your ZIP code.

How many Medicare Advantage plans are offered in Maricopa County for 2027?

Glendale is in Maricopa County, where 88 Medicare Advantage plans from 16 carriers are offered under the 2026 CMS Landscape (the 2027 landscape is being finalized for Annual Enrollment). By plan type, the county's 2026 mix is 55 HMO, 16 HMO-POS and 17 PPO plans; 82 include drug coverage and 36 are Special Needs Plans for people with certain conditions, dual Medicare-Medicaid eligibility, or who live in an institutional setting.

The carriers offering plans in the county include 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.

What happens if I do nothing by December 7, 2026?

If your plan is being offered again in 2027, it simply renews on January 1 with the changes described in the ANOC — no gap in coverage, no action required. If your plan is being terminated for 2027, your carrier's notice will tell you, and Medicare will give you a Special Enrollment Period to pick another plan.

Doing nothing is a valid choice if the ANOC changes look fine to you. The risk is doing nothing without reading the ANOC — because premiums, drug tiers or networks you depend on may have shifted.

What can I still change after December 7?

Two windows run after Annual Enrollment closes.

• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: January 1 – March 31, 2027. If you are already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can switch to a different Advantage plan or drop back to Original Medicare (and add a stand-alone Part D plan). You get one change in this window.
• Special Enrollment Periods apply year-round for specific life events — moving, losing other coverage, qualifying for Extra Help, and others.

A few 2027 figures are not out yet. CMS typically announces the 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible and the 2027 IRMAA income brackets in the fall, usually November. Watch medicare.gov for those once they post.