Medicare Advantage

How to compare Medicare Advantage plans in San Diego for 2027 before the Dec. 7 deadline

People in San Diego can choose from 85 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027, against 93 this year. 26 of this year’s plans are gone, 18 are new to San Diego County, and 48 that continue have changed their premium, deductible, plan type or name, 20 of them under a new name.

San Diego — Fall 2026. Open enrollment for 2027 Medicare coverage is underway, and residents of San Diego County have until December 7, 2026 to switch, join or drop a Medicare Advantage plan. Whatever you pick takes effect January 1, 2027. If you do nothing, your current plan simply renews next year — assuming it is still offered — with any changes spelled out in the Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) your insurer mailed in September.

This guide walks through what the 2027 lineup looks like in San Diego County and a plain-English way to compare plans before the deadline.

What San Diego County's 2027 lineup looks like

San Diego is in San Diego County, where Medicare Advantage availability is set. For plan year 2027, CMS lists 85 Medicare Advantage plans from 15 carriers in the county. By type, that breaks down to 65 HMO, 15 HMO-POS and 5 PPO plans. All 85 include Part D prescription drug coverage.

Special Needs Plans (SNPs) are a big share of the lineup: 32 Chronic Condition SNPs (C-SNPs) for people with qualifying conditions like diabetes or heart disease, and 7 Dual-Eligible SNPs (D-SNPs) for people who have both Medicare and Medi-Cal. There are no Institutional SNPs in the county for 2027.

Compared with 2026, that is a smaller overall count (85 versus 93) from a slightly smaller carrier field. 18 plans are new for 2027, 26 plans are not returning, and about 20 plans have been renamed. A rename does not necessarily mean the plan changed much — but a non-return means your coverage really is going away and you need to pick something else.

The table on this page lists every 2027 plan by carrier, so you can see what each insurer offers in the county.

What is new for 2027

A few program-level changes apply to everyone with Part D, inside or outside of Medicare Advantage:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 in 2027 (it is $2,100 in 2026). Once your out-of-pocket spending on covered drugs hits that cap, you pay $0 for the rest of the calendar year.
• The Part D maximum deductible is $700 in 2027 (up from $615 in 2026). Plans can set a lower deductible, but not higher.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan — the option to spread your drug costs across monthly payments instead of paying at the pharmacy — continues in 2027.

CMS has not yet announced the 2027 Part B standard premium, Part B deductible, or IRMAA income brackets. Those usually come out in November. Until then, treat anyone's "2027 Part B" number as a guess.

Carriers offering plans in San Diego County for 2027

Listed alphabetically, with their 2027 plan counts in the county (from the CMS Landscape file):

• Aetna (CVS Health): 4 plans (HMO, HMO-POS)
• Alignment Health Plan: 15 plans (HMO, HMO-POS, PPO)
• Astiva Health: 5 plans (HMO)
• Blue Shield of California: 5 plans (HMO), including 1 D-SNP
• Centene (WellCare): 4 plans (HMO), including 1 D-SNP
• Champion Health Plan: 9 plans (HMO, HMO-POS)
• Clever Care Health Plan: 6 plans (HMO)
• Community Health Group: 2 plans (HMO), including 1 D-SNP
• Elevance Health (Anthem): 4 plans (HMO-POS, PPO)
• Humana: 6 plans (HMO, PPO)
• Imperial Health Plan of California: 4 plans (HMO)
• Kaiser Permanente: 3 plans (HMO), including 1 D-SNP
• Molina Healthcare of California: 1 plan (HMO), 1 D-SNP
• SCAN Health Plan: 8 plans (HMO), including 2 D-SNP
• UnitedHealthcare: 9 plans (HMO, HMO-POS)

Availability does not mean a plan fits you — networks, formularies and costs differ, and that is what the comparison steps below are for.

A step-by-step way to compare plans before Dec. 7

Work through these in order. The first two eliminate most plans quickly.

1. Read your Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) first. If you already have a Medicare Advantage plan, this is the yellow-and-white booklet (or email) your insurer sent in late September. It shows what is changing in your current plan for 2027 — premium, drug tiers, copays, network, extra benefits. If nothing meaningful changes and you are happy, you may not need to shop. If something you rely on is going away, keep reading.

2. Check your doctors and hospitals. For each plan you are considering, confirm your primary care doctor, your specialists and your preferred hospital are in-network for 2027. Call the plan or search the plan's online provider directory. Networks change every January, and a 2026 directory will not tell you about 2027.

3. Check your prescriptions and pharmacy. Use the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov — enter every drug you take, the dose, and the pharmacies you use. Plan Finder shows your estimated yearly drug cost under each plan, which tier your drug is on, and whether your pharmacy is "preferred" (usually cheaper) or "standard." A plan that looks cheap on paper can be expensive once your actual drugs are plugged in.

4. Add up the full yearly cost. Look at the monthly premium plus the plan's medical deductible, typical copays for the care you use, and the drug costs from step 3. Also note the plan's maximum out-of-pocket limit — the ceiling on what you would pay for medical care in 2027.

5. Look at the plan rules and extras last. HMOs usually require you to stay in network and get referrals; PPOs let you go out of network at higher cost. Check prior authorization rules for anything you expect to need. Then weigh the extras — dental, vision, hearing, OTC allowance, transportation, fitness — that actually matter to you.

If you qualify for a Special Needs Plan

San Diego County has 32 C-SNPs and 7 D-SNPs for 2027. C-SNPs are built around a specific chronic condition and often have tailored drug lists and care coordination. D-SNPs are for people enrolled in both Medicare and Medi-Cal, and they coordinate the two programs' benefits. You still need to compare networks, drugs and rules the same way — but your plan universe is narrower, which can make the choice simpler.

Where to get help

• medicare.gov/plan-compare — the Medicare Plan Finder; the only tool that prices your actual drugs across every plan sold in your ZIP code.
• 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), 24/7 — questions about your coverage and the enrollment process.
• Each plan's Evidence of Coverage and provider/pharmacy directories — the authoritative source for what a specific plan does and does not cover in 2027.