Medicare Advantage

Oakland's 2027 Medicare Advantage slate: five new plans, two carriers out

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, Calif. — Fall 2026. As the Annual Enrollment Period opens Oct. 15 and runs through Dec. 7, 2026, the Medicare Advantage lineup serving Oakland is shifting. Two carriers are leaving Alameda County entirely for the 2027 plan year, ten individual plans will not be renewed, and five new plans are coming in. If you live in Oakland, this is the window to see where your plan lands on that map — and what to do if it doesn't come back.

What the 2027 map looks like in Alameda County

Medicare Advantage availability is set at the county level, so when we talk about Oakland's lineup we're really talking about Alameda County. For the 2026 plan year, 12 carriers offer 37 Medicare Advantage plans here — 29 HMOs, 5 HMO-POS plans and 3 PPOs. Fifteen of those are Special Needs Plans (SNPs), and all 37 include drug coverage.

For 2027, the carrier list contracts. Two insurers that sell plans in Alameda County this year — Central Health Medicare Plan and Elevance Health (Anthem) — are not offering Medicare Advantage plans in the county next year. The remaining carriers continue, with changes to specific plans.

Plans not returning in 2027

Ten plans listed in the 2026 Alameda County lineup will not be sold here next year. In alphabetical order by carrier:

• Aetna (CVS Health): Aetna Medicare Eagle (PPO), Aetna Medicare Enhanced (PPO), Aetna Medicare Signature (PPO)
• Align Senior Care: Advantage Care (HMO)
• Alignment Health Plan: Alignment Health Honor+ Plan (HMO)
• CCHP (Chinese Community Health Plan): CCHP Senior Program (HMO)
• Central Health Medicare Plan: Central Health Dual Access Plan (HMO D-SNP)
• Elevance Health (Anthem): Anthem Prime (HMO-POS), Anthem Select (HMO-POS)
• SCAN Health Plan: SCAN MyChoice (HMO)

If you're enrolled in one of these plans, your insurer must send you a non-renewal notice. You'll qualify for a Special Enrollment Period that generally runs from Dec. 8, 2026 through the end of February 2027, giving you time to choose another Medicare Advantage plan or go back to Original Medicare (and, if you want, add a stand-alone Part D plan).

Plans new for 2027

Five Medicare Advantage plans are joining the Alameda County lineup for 2027:

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

Two of the five are Chronic Condition Special Needs Plans (C-SNPs), which are built for people with specific long-term conditions. Eligibility rules apply, so check the plan's own materials before you enroll.

Renamed and changed plans

Ten plans are keeping their place in the lineup but changing names for 2027. A few examples: SCAN Compass (HMO) becomes Sutter Senior Advantage, a SCAN Medicare Plan (HMO); Alignment Health Harmony (HMO) is now Central Health Harmony 031 (HMO); and several Alignment C-SNPs are picking up new numeric tags (BreathEasy becomes BreathEasy Plus 041, Clarity becomes Clarity Plus 042, and so on). The full before-and-after list appears in the table below.

In total, 17 plans are continuing with some change to premium, deductible, type or name. The specifics will show up in your Annual Notice of Change — the document your plan is required to send in September.

Carrier-by-carrier snapshot

For 2026, the carriers serving Alameda County are: Aetna (CVS Health), Alameda Alliance for Health, Align Senior Care, Alignment Health Plan, Blue Shield of California, CCHP (Chinese Community Health Plan), Central Health Medicare Plan, Elevance Health (Anthem), Imperial Health Plan of California, Inc., Kaiser Permanente, SCAN Health Plan, and UnitedHealthcare.

For 2027, Central Health Medicare Plan and Elevance Health (Anthem) drop off. The table below shows each carrier's current plans and plan types; use it alongside the Medicare Plan Finder on medicare.gov to see the 2027 details.

What's changing in the Part D rules for 2027

Separate from the carrier changes, a couple of program-wide numbers are moving next year. The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026). The Part D maximum deductible rises to $700 in 2027 (up from $615 in 2026). CMS has also set the national base beneficiary premium at $41.33 for 2027, which is a formula input — not the premium any specific plan charges.

CMS has not yet announced the 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible or the 2027 IRMAA income brackets; those usually come out in November. The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan, which lets you spread your drug costs across the year in level monthly bills, continues in 2027.

Key dates to put on the calendar

• Oct. 15 – Dec. 7, 2026: Annual Enrollment Period. Any change takes effect Jan. 1, 2027.
• Jan. 1 – March 31, 2027: Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you get one chance to switch to another MA plan or return to Original Medicare.
• Dec. 8, 2026 – end of February 2027 (approximate): Special Enrollment Period for people whose plan is not being renewed.