Medicare Advantage

Five brand-new Medicare Advantage plans land in Oakland for 2027 — here's how to check one

For 2027, Oakland is looking at 32 Medicare Advantage plans: 5 new, 10 gone since 2026, and 27 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 10 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Alameda County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

OAKLAND — Shoppers in Alameda County will see five Medicare Advantage plans on the 2027 lineup that were not sold here this year, according to the CMS Medicare Advantage Landscape Source Files for 2026 and 2027. They come from four carriers, and all five include drug coverage. The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and any change you make takes effect January 1, 2027.

A "new" plan is exactly that — new. It has no local track record and no Star Rating history yet, because CMS only rates plans after they have been running long enough to measure. That isn't a reason to pick one or skip one; it's just something to know before you call.

What's new in Oakland for 2027

Oakland is in Alameda County, where CMS lists 32 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Five of those are new — meaning they weren't offered to Alameda County residents for 2026. In alphabetical order by carrier:

• Aetna (CVS Health) — Aetna Medicare Chronic Care (HMO C-SNP), with drug coverage; and Aetna Medicare Eagle (HMO), with drug coverage.
• Alignment Health Plan — Alignment Health Honor Plus 060 (HMO), with drug coverage.
• Imperial Health Plan of California, Inc. — Imperial Flex (HMO C-SNP), with drug coverage.
• SCAN Health Plan — SCAN Costco Medicare Advantage (HMO), with drug coverage.

The table below lists every 2027 plan available in the county, including these new entries, so you can see them alongside the renewing options.

Plan type, in plain language

Four of the five newcomers are HMOs, and one — Aetna Medicare Eagle — is also an HMO. All five require you to use the plan's network except in emergencies, and HMOs usually ask you to pick a primary care doctor and get referrals to specialists.

Two of the five are Special Needs Plans (SNPs), both of the "C-SNP" (Chronic Condition) kind: Aetna Medicare Chronic Care and Imperial Flex. C-SNPs are built around people living with specific long-term conditions, so eligibility rules apply. The plan or 1-800-MEDICARE can confirm whether you qualify.

All five new plans include Part D prescription drug coverage built in.

How a new plan is different from a renewing one

If a plan has been in your county for several years, you can look up its Star Rating, read about members' experiences, and ask neighbors who are enrolled. A new plan hasn't been measured yet, so that history simply doesn't exist. CMS treats this as a normal part of the plan life cycle — it isn't a warning sign, and it isn't a selling point either.

What you can check for a new plan is exactly what you'd check for any plan:

• Are your doctors, specialists and hospital in the network?
• Are your prescriptions on the formulary, and at what tier?
• What are the monthly premium, deductible, copays and the plan's maximum out-of-pocket?
• Does it include extras you'd use (dental, vision, hearing, over-the-counter, transportation)?

Those details live in the plan's Summary of Benefits and Evidence of Coverage, and on the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov.

How to vet one before December 7

A step-by-step that works for any new plan — or any renewing one, for that matter:

1. Pull your Annual Notice of Change. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, your 2027 ANOC arrived in September. It spells out what's changing. 2. List your prescriptions and your doctors. Include dosages for drugs and the full name of each provider and facility. 3. Go to medicare.gov/plan-compare. Enter your ZIP code, add your drugs and your pharmacy, and the Plan Finder will show the plans available in Alameda County — including the five new ones — with each one's cost estimates based on your drug list. 4. Check the provider directory on the plan's own website, and call your doctor's office to confirm they'll be in-network for 2027. Directories update constantly. 5. Call the plan or 1-800-MEDICARE with any specific question — SNP eligibility, a drug not on the formulary, or how a referral works.

If you do nothing during the window, your current plan renews for 2027 as described in its ANOC. You are not required to switch.

The 2027 Part D numbers that are set

Whichever Medicare Advantage plan you pick with drug coverage, the Part D rules Congress and CMS set apply across the board:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 in 2027 (it's $2,100 in 2026).
• The Part D maximum deductible is $700 in 2027 (it's $615 in 2026).
• The coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone — Part D has three phases now.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan is still available if you'd like to spread drug costs across the calendar year.

The 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible, and the 2027 IRMAA brackets, are published by CMS later in the fall — usually in November. We'll update our guides when those land.