Medicare Advantage

Riverside's 2027 Medicare Advantage menu: 18 carriers, 68 plans, all with drug coverage

Riverside County has 88 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 17 plans are not coming back, 14 are new, and 52 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 20 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Riverside, not which plan to pick.

Medicare AdvantageRiverside, CA

RIVERSIDE, Calif. — If you are shopping for a 2027 Medicare Advantage plan in Riverside, the lineup is long. Riverside is in Riverside County, where CMS lists 68 Medicare Advantage plans from 18 carriers for the 2027 plan year, and every one of them includes prescription drug coverage. The table below lists every plan, grouped alphabetically by carrier, along with its plan type (HMO, HMO-POS or PPO) and whether it is a Special Needs Plan.

This article is a plain-language guide to that roster — what the plan types mean, which carriers are on the menu, and where to check details for your own situation. It does not compare premiums, benefits or star ratings, and it does not recommend any plan or carrier.

What the 2027 Riverside lineup looks like

Riverside County's 91 Medicare Advantage plans break down this way:

• HMO: 72 plans
• HMO-POS: 15 plans
• PPO: 4 plans
• Special Needs Plans (SNPs), included in the totals above: 35

Every plan on the 2027 Riverside County list is an MA-PD, meaning it bundles Part D prescription drug coverage into the medical plan. That is why the number of stand-alone Part D plans in the roster is zero — anyone enrolling in one of these Advantage plans gets their drug coverage through the same plan.

Because Medicare Advantage availability is set at the county level, a Riverside resident and someone in Corona, Moreno Valley or Palm Desert are all looking at the same 91-plan menu.

The 19 carriers offering plans in Riverside County

In alphabetical order, the carriers with 2027 MA-PD plans in Riverside County are:

• Aetna (CVS Health) — 6 plans (HMO, HMO-POS)
• Align Senior Care — 3 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Alignment Health Plan — 15 plans (HMO; 7 Special Needs)
• Astiva Health — 4 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Blue Shield of California — 2 plans (HMO)
• Centene (WellCare) — 5 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Central Health Medicare Plan — 6 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Champion Heath Plan — 7 plans (HMO, HMO-POS; 6 Special Needs)
• Clever Care Health Plan — 4 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Elevance Health (Anthem) — 2 plans (HMO-POS)
• Elite Health Plan, Inc. — 2 plans (HMO)
• Humana — 8 plans (HMO, PPO)
• IEHP DualChoice — 1 plan (HMO; 1 Special Needs)
• Imperial Health Plan of California, Inc. — 3 plans (HMO; 1 Special Needs)
• Kaiser Permanente — 4 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Molina Healthcare of California — 2 plans (HMO; 1 Special Needs)
• SCAN Health Plan — 9 plans (HMO; 4 Special Needs)
• UnitedHealthcare — 7 plans (HMO, HMO-POS; 2 Special Needs)
• VillageHealth — 1 plan (HMO-POS; 1 Special Needs)

The full plan names sit in the table below.

What HMO, HMO-POS and PPO actually mean

The plan type tells you a lot about how you will use the plan day to day.

• HMO (Health Maintenance Organization): You generally use a set network of doctors and hospitals, and you usually need a referral to see a specialist. Out-of-network care is typically not covered except in emergencies.
• HMO-POS (HMO with a Point-of-Service option): Works like an HMO for most care, but adds a limited option to see certain out-of-network providers, usually at a higher cost share.
• PPO (Preferred Provider Organization): More flexibility to see out-of-network providers, typically without a referral, though you generally pay less in-network.

In Riverside County, the 2027 menu leans heavily HMO. If out-of-network flexibility is important to you, you can see from the table which carriers offer HMO-POS or PPO options.

Who Special Needs Plans are for

Thirty-five of Riverside County's 91 plans are Special Needs Plans (SNPs). SNPs are Medicare Advantage plans designed for people who meet specific criteria:

• D-SNPs are for people who have both Medicare and Medi-Cal.
• C-SNPs are for people with certain chronic conditions (for example, diabetes or chronic heart conditions).
• I-SNPs are for people who live in — or need the level of care provided in — an institution such as a nursing facility.

You must qualify to enroll in an SNP. If you do not, the non-SNP HMO, HMO-POS and PPO plans on the roster are the ones open to you.

Drug coverage: what's new for 2027

Every 2027 Medicare Advantage plan in Riverside County includes Part D. A few program-wide numbers to keep in mind while you compare:

• The Part D annual out-of-pocket cap is $2,100 for 2026.
• The Part D maximum deductible is $615 (each plan can set its own deductible up to that amount).
• The old coverage gap ("donut hole") was eliminated in 2025; Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread your yearly drug costs across monthly payments if you choose to opt in.
• Higher-income enrollees may owe IRMAA surcharges; for 2026, those begin above $109,000 in income for a single filer.

For the actual formulary, tier structure and pharmacy network on any specific plan in the table, use the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov or the plan's own materials.

Dates and deadlines to circle

• Medicare Annual Enrollment Period (AEP): Oct. 15 – Dec. 7. This is when you can join, switch or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan for coverage starting Jan. 1.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (MA OEP): Jan. 1 – March 31. If you are already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can switch to a different MA plan or return to Original Medicare (and add a Part D plan).

Outside these windows, you generally need a Special Enrollment Period to make changes.

How to compare the plans in the table

The table below shows every 2027 Medicare Advantage plan available in Riverside County, sorted by carrier, with each plan's type and drug-coverage status. To go from that list to a decision that fits you, a few practical steps:

1. Confirm your doctors, hospitals and preferred pharmacies are in a plan's network. 2. Check that your prescriptions are on the plan's formulary, and at what tier. 3. Look at the plan's premium, deductible, copays and out-of-pocket maximum on the Plan Finder. 4. If you qualify for an SNP (dual-eligible, chronic condition or institutional), see whether one fits your situation. 5. Call 1-800-MEDICARE or your California SHIP (HICAP) counselor for free, unbiased help.