Medicare Advantage

Before Dec. 7 in Scottsdale: a step-by-step checklist for your 2027 Medicare plan

For 2027, Scottsdale 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.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Fall 2026. If you have a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan, the mail carrier has already dropped the most important envelope of your Medicare year: your Annual Notice of Change. It explains what your plan will do differently on January 1, 2027 — and you have until December 7, 2026 to decide whether to keep it, switch it, or move to Original Medicare with a stand-alone drug plan.

Scottsdale sits in Maricopa County, where there is no shortage of choices to compare against. The point of this checklist is not to shop every plan on the shelf — it is to make sure the plan you end up with on January 1 still covers your doctors, your hospitals and your prescriptions.

What is the December 7, 2026 Medicare deadline for Scottsdale residents?

December 7, 2026 is the last day of the Annual Enrollment Period for 2027 coverage. Any Medicare Advantage or Part D change you make between October 15 and December 7, 2026 takes effect January 1, 2027.

After December 7, your options narrow. People already in a Medicare Advantage plan get one more window — the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period from January 1 to March 31, 2027 — to switch to a different Advantage plan or drop back to Original Medicare. Outside those windows, you generally need a Special Enrollment Period (a move, a loss of other coverage, and so on).

How do I read my Annual Notice of Change before I renew?

The ANOC is the plan's own letter to you listing every change for 2027: premium, deductible, copays, the drug formulary, the provider and pharmacy networks, and extra benefits like dental, vision or over-the-counter allowances. It usually arrives by late September.

Open it with a highlighter and look for four things:

1. The premium and the deductible — are they changing? 2. Your prescriptions — is each drug still covered, and is it still on the same tier? 3. Your doctors and hospitals — is the network the same? 4. The extras you actually use — dental, vision, hearing, transportation, OTC card.

If nothing you rely on is changing, you may be done. If something is, keep reading.

What should a Scottsdale Medicare review checklist include?

Work down this list in order. Each step points to a free, official source.

• Step 1 — List what you need the plan to do. Write down your current prescriptions (with dose and frequency), your regular doctors and specialists, and the hospital you would want in an emergency. In Scottsdale, that often means confirming HonorHealth and Mayo Clinic providers; your plan's provider directory on its member website is the authoritative source.
• Step 2 — Read the ANOC cover-to-cover. Flag anything that changed.
• Step 3 — Check your drugs against the 2027 formulary. Every Part D and Medicare Advantage plan with drug coverage posts its 2027 drug list on its website. A drug moving tiers or coming off the list is the single most common reason to switch.
• Step 4 — Check your doctors against the 2027 network. Call the office and ask, "Will you still be in-network for this plan in 2027?" Networks can shift at year-end.
• Step 5 — Use the Medicare Plan Finder. At medicare.gov/plan-compare, type in your ZIP code and your drug list and compare side by side. The tool shows your estimated total yearly cost, not just the premium.
• Step 6 — If you want to talk to a human, call 1-800-MEDICARE. It is free, 24/7, and not a sales line.

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

For 2026, Maricopa County offers 88 Medicare Advantage plans from 16 carriers — 55 HMO, 16 HMO-POS and 17 PPO, with 82 of them including drug coverage and 36 designated as Special Needs Plans. The 2027 county lineup is published by CMS in early October 2026.

The carriers serving Maricopa County in 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 on this page lists every plan each carrier offers; use it alongside the Plan Finder rather than as a ranking.

What is changing in Medicare for 2027 that I should know about?

Two Part D figures are confirmed for 2027. The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 (up from $2,100 in 2026), and the Part D maximum deductible rises to $700 (up from $615 in 2026). CMS has also set the Part D national base beneficiary premium at $41.33 for 2027 — that is a formula input, not what any specific plan charges.

The 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible have not been announced yet. CMS typically releases them in November 2026, along with the updated IRMAA income brackets for higher earners. If a plan or ad quotes those numbers before CMS does, treat them as estimates.

One ongoing feature worth knowing: the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your Part D drug costs across the calendar year in monthly installments instead of paying at the pharmacy counter. It does not lower what you owe — it just smooths it out. You opt in through your drug plan.

What happens if I do nothing by December 7?

If you take no action by December 7, 2026, your current plan renews on January 1, 2027 with the changes described in the ANOC. You will not lose coverage.

The exception is if your plan is being discontinued or is pulling out of Maricopa County. In that case, your plan sends a non-renewal notice, and you get a Special Enrollment Period to pick a new plan without penalty. Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) continues no matter what — it does not need to be renewed each year.