Medicare Advantage

Before Dec. 7: how to vet Miami's 16 new MA plans

For 2027, Miami is looking at 101 Medicare Advantage plans: 16 new, 30 gone since 2026, and 61 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 20 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Miami-Dade County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

MIAMI — Shoppers in Miami will see 16 Medicare Advantage plans on the shelf for 2027 that were not sold here a year ago, according to the CMS Medicare Advantage Landscape Source File for the coming plan year. The names and plan types are set, but because each one is brand new, there is no past Star Rating history for it yet — which makes a careful check against your own doctors and prescriptions especially important before the Annual Enrollment Period closes on December 7, 2026.

What "new for 2027" means in Miami-Dade

Medicare Advantage availability is set at the county level, so when CMS lists a plan as new, it means the carrier did not offer that specific plan in Miami-Dade County for 2026 but will for 2027. In this county, 16 of the 101 Medicare Advantage plans offered for 2027 are new. Alongside those additions, some 2026 plans are not returning and others have been renamed. The table below lists every plan, and your plan's ANOC spells out any changes to a renewing plan.

A renewing plan carries a track record you can look up — a Star Rating, a provider network you may already use, a drug formulary you have filled from. A new plan does not have that history yet. CMS does not assign a Star Rating to a plan in its first year, so you will not find one on the Plan Finder for these 16. That is normal, and it is neither a warning nor a seal of approval.

The 16 new Medicare Advantage plans for 2027

Listed alphabetically by carrier, exactly as CMS lists them. All 16 include prescription drug coverage.

Aetna (CVS Health) — 1 new plan

• Aetna Medicare Partial Dual Select (HMO D-SNP)

Align Senior Care — 2 new plans

• Premier Care (HMO I-SNP)
• Senior Care (HMO I-SNP)

Centene (WellCare) — 4 new plans

• Wellcare Simple (HMO-POS)
• Wellcare Sunshine Health Dual Access (HMO-POS D-SNP)
• Wellcare Sunshine Health Dual Align (HMO D-SNP)
• Wellcare Sunshine Health Dual Align Unity (HMO D-SNP)

Devoted Health — 1 new plan

• DEVOTED GIVEBACK EXTRAS 110 FL (HMO)

Doctors HealthCare Plans, Inc. — 4 new plans

• DrExtraCare-SFL (HMO C-SNP)
• DrMax-Dade (HMO)
• DrPartialDual-SFL (HMO D-SNP)
• DrSelect-SFL (HMO)

Elevance Health (Anthem) — 1 new plan

• Simply Complete Platinum (HMO D-SNP)

Gold Kidney Health Plan — 1 new plan

• Gold Heart & Diabetes (HMO-POS C-SNP)

Humana — 2 new plans

• Humana Dual Integrated (PPO D-SNP)
• HumanaChoice Giveback H7617-145 (PPO)

Reading the labels: HMO, PPO and the SNP tags

The letters after a plan name tell you how it works and who it is designed for.

• HMO uses an in-network set of doctors and typically asks you to pick a primary care doctor and get referrals.
• HMO-POS is an HMO with a "point-of-service" option that lets you go outside the network for certain services, usually at a higher cost.
• PPO gives you more freedom to see out-of-network providers, usually with a higher share of the cost.

Many of the new Miami-Dade plans are Special Needs Plans (SNPs), which are limited to people who meet specific eligibility rules:

• D-SNP (Dual-Eligible) — for people who have both Medicare and Medicaid.
• C-SNP (Chronic Condition) — for people with a qualifying condition such as diabetes, heart disease or end-stage renal disease.
• I-SNP (Institutional) — for people who live in a nursing home or need that level of care.

If you do not meet the SNP's eligibility rule, you cannot enroll in that plan, no matter how it looks on paper.

How to vet a new plan before December 7

Because these 16 plans are new, you cannot lean on a neighbor's experience or last year's Star Rating. The checks that matter are personal.

1. Your doctors. On medicare.gov's Plan Finder, open the plan's provider directory, or call the plan directly, and confirm each doctor and hospital you use is in network for 2027. Networks change year to year. 2. Your prescriptions. Enter every drug you take, with the dose, into the Plan Finder. The tool will show whether each drug is on the plan's 2027 formulary, what tier it is on, and whether there are rules like prior authorization or step therapy. 3. Your pharmacy. Confirm the pharmacy you use is a network pharmacy for that plan — preferred and standard pharmacies can mean different costs. 4. The Summary of Benefits and Evidence of Coverage. The plan posts these documents for 2027. They are the authoritative source for what the plan covers and what you pay. 5. The Annual Notice of Change (ANOC). If you are already in a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan, the ANOC mailed by your insurer explains what is changing for 2027 — premium, copays, drug tiers, networks. Reading it is the easiest way to decide whether to stay or shop.

If you want help, call 1-800-MEDICARE (24/7) or use the Plan Finder at medicare.gov.

The dates and dollars to keep in mind

The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 – December 7, 2026. A change you make in that window takes effect January 1, 2027. If you do nothing, your current plan renews for 2027 as long as the carrier still offers it.

A couple of program-level figures are already confirmed for next year:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 in 2027 (it is $2,100 in 2026).
• The Part D maximum deductible rises to $700 in 2027 (it is $615 in 2026).

The 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible, and the 2027 IRMAA income brackets, have not been announced yet. CMS typically publishes them later in the fall.

If a Medicare Advantage plan does not fit after January 1, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (January 1 – March 31, 2027) gives you one chance to switch to another Medicare Advantage plan or return to Original Medicare.