Medicare Advantage

Before you pick a Medicare Advantage plan in Bakersfield: the 11 carriers and what HMO, PPO and SNP mean

For 2027, Bakersfield is looking at 42 Medicare Advantage plans: 11 new, 8 gone since 2026, and 14 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 4 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Kern County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

Medicare AdvantageBakersfield, CA

If you live in Bakersfield and you are shopping Medicare Advantage for 2027, the first thing worth knowing is not a price or a benefit — it is the shape of the market. Bakersfield is in Kern County, where 11 carriers are offering Medicare Advantage plans that include drug coverage. Those plans come in a few different structures — HMO, HMO-POS, PPO and Special Needs Plans — and the differences matter more than most brochures let on.

This guide walks through who is offering plans, how many each one offers, and what those plan-type letters actually mean.

Who offers Medicare Advantage in Bakersfield

Because plan availability is set at the county level, the carriers below sell to all of Kern County, Bakersfield included. In alphabetical order, the 11 carriers offering Medicare Advantage with drug coverage in the area for 2027 are:

• Aetna (CVS Health) — 4 plans
• Blue Shield of California — 1 plan
• Centene (WellCare) — 2 plans
• Central Health Medicare Plan — 5 plans
• Champion Heath Plan — 7 plans
• Elevance Health (Anthem) — 4 plans
• Humana — 5 plans
• Imperial Health Plan of California, Inc. — 3 plans
• Kaiser Permanente — 3 plans
• Kern Family Health Care Medicare (D-SNP) — 1 plan
• UnitedHealthcare — 4 plans

The table below lists every plan by carrier, along with its plan type. The count next to each carrier is not a ranking — a carrier with more plans is not automatically a better fit than one with fewer. What matters is whether a given plan works with the doctors, hospitals and medications you actually use.

What HMO, HMO-POS and PPO mean

Medicare Advantage plans come in a handful of shapes. Among the 38 plans in Kern County for 2027, you will see HMOs, HMO-POS plans and a PPO.

• HMO (Health Maintenance Organization). You choose a primary care doctor and use in-network providers. Referrals are usually required to see specialists. Out-of-network care generally is not covered, except in an emergency.
• HMO-POS (Point of Service). An HMO with a limited ability to go out of network for certain services, typically at higher cost.
• PPO (Preferred Provider Organization). You can see providers in or out of the network without a referral, though in-network care costs less. Kern County includes a PPO option in the 2027 lineup.
• PFFS (Private Fee-for-Service). This type is not offered in Kern County for 2027, but you may see it in other regions. PFFS plans set their own payment terms, and any Medicare provider may choose whether to accept them.

None of these is inherently “better.” They are different trade-offs between flexibility and structure.

Special Needs Plans, explained

Of the 39 plans in Kern County, 19 are Special Needs Plans, or SNPs. These are Medicare Advantage plans built for specific groups of people, and you have to qualify to enroll.

• D-SNP (Dual Eligible). For people who have both Medicare and Medi-Cal (California’s Medicaid). Locally, several carriers — including Elevance Health (Anthem), Centene (WellCare), Humana, Kaiser Permanente and Kern Family Health Care Medicare — offer D-SNPs.
• C-SNP (Chronic Condition). For people with certain qualifying chronic conditions, such as diabetes, chronic heart failure or end-stage renal disease. Champion Heath Plan, Central Health Medicare Plan, Elevance Health (Anthem), Imperial Health Plan and UnitedHealthcare each offer one or more C-SNPs in the area.
• I-SNP (Institutional). For people who live in a nursing home or need a similar level of care. No I-SNPs appear in the 2027 Kern County lineup.

An SNP can only enroll people who meet the eligibility rule for that specific plan. If you qualify, you may be able to enroll or switch outside the usual enrollment windows.

Drug coverage and stand-alone Part D

Every Medicare Advantage plan available in Kern County for 2027 includes prescription drug coverage. There are no stand-alone Part D plans listed at the county level in the source data — most Bakersfield residents who want drug coverage will get it bundled through a Medicare Advantage plan, or, if they stay on Original Medicare, through a stand-alone Part D plan available in the wider California market.

A few program-level Part D facts to keep in mind for 2027:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100 for the year.
• The maximum Part D deductible any plan can charge is $615.
• The old coverage gap (“donut hole”) is gone as of 2025 — Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your drug costs across the year in monthly installments, if you choose.

What about star ratings?

Medicare rates plan contracts on a 1-to-5 scale based on quality and member experience. In the source data for this area, no contracts are currently rated 4 stars or higher. Ratings are one data point among many, and they change year to year — they are best used alongside the questions that matter to you personally: Are my doctors in the network? Are my medications on the formulary? How does the plan handle referrals?

Dates to keep in mind

• Annual Enrollment Period: Oct. 15 – Dec. 7, 2026. This is when you can join, switch or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan for 2027.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: Jan. 1 – March 31. If you are already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can switch to another one or return to Original Medicare (and add a stand-alone Part D plan).
• IRMAA — the income-related surcharge on Part B and Part D — kicks in above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.