Medicare Advantage

Louisville Medicare review for 2027: a step-by-step checklist before Dec. 7

Jefferson County has 67 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 13 plans are not coming back, 13 are new, and 23 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 9 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Louisville, not which plan to pick.

LOUISVILLE — October 2026. The window to review your Medicare coverage for 2027 is open. The Annual Enrollment Period runs from October 15 through December 7, 2026, and any change you make takes effect January 1, 2027. If you do nothing, your current plan rolls over into next year — with whatever changes the plan has already mailed you in its Annual Notice of Change.

That is why this review matters even if you like your plan. The ANOC is the document that tells you what will be different in 2027: the premium, the drug list, the pharmacy network, the doctors and hospitals in-network, and the extra benefits. A few focused hours now can save you a surprise in January.

Step 1: Read your Annual Notice of Change

Your plan was required to mail or send your ANOC by the end of September. It is a side-by-side of what your plan looks like in 2026 versus 2027. Open it with a highlighter and look specifically at:

• The monthly premium for 2027.
• The deductible, if any.
• Copays for primary care, specialists, urgent care and the ER.
• The maximum out-of-pocket.
• The drug tiers and the preferred pharmacy list.
• Any extra benefits (dental, vision, hearing, OTC, fitness) and whether the dollar amount or rules changed.

If you cannot find your ANOC, call your plan's member services number — the one on the back of your card — and ask them to resend it, or look for it in your plan's online account.

Step 2: Check your doctors and hospitals for 2027

Networks can change between plan years. For each doctor, specialist and hospital you use, confirm they will be in-network for 2027 — not just today. Ways to check:

• Use the 2027 provider directory on your plan's website (it should post before December 7).
• Call the plan and ask them to confirm by provider name and NPI.
• Call your doctor's billing office and ask which Medicare Advantage plans they will accept in 2027. Being in a system like UofL Health, Baptist Health or Norton Healthcare does not automatically mean every one of their doctors is in every plan's network.

Write down the date you called and who told you — networks shift, and your notes are your record.

Step 3: Check your prescriptions against the 2027 formulary

Every Part D and Medicare Advantage drug plan can change its formulary (drug list) each year. For each medication you take:

• Confirm it is still covered in 2027.
• Note the tier (tier changes can change your copay).
• Check for prior authorization, step therapy or quantity limits.
• Make sure your pharmacy is still "preferred" — standard vs. preferred pharmacy status affects cost.

Two 2027 Part D figures CMS has already set: the out-of-pocket cap on covered drugs rises to $2,400 in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026), and the maximum Part D deductible rises to $700 in 2027 (up from $615 in 2026). If high drug costs are a worry, ask about the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan, which lets you spread covered drug costs across the year in monthly installments.

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

Step 4: See how many plans Jefferson County offers

Louisville sits in Jefferson County, where plan availability is set. For 2026, Jefferson County has 67 Medicare Advantage plans from 10 carriers: 15 HMOs, 17 HMO-POS plans and 35 PPOs, with 28 of them Special Needs Plans and all 67 including drug coverage. The 2027 lineup posts on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder in October.

The 10 carriers serving the county, in alphabetical order, are Abilis Health, Aetna (CVS Health), Centene (WellCare), Devoted Health, Elevance Health (Anthem), Essence Healthcare, Humana, Passport Advantage, Provider Partners Health Plans and UnitedHealthcare. The table below lists every plan.

A Special Needs Plan (SNP) is for people with specific situations — most commonly people who have both Medicare and Medicaid (D-SNP), people with certain chronic conditions (C-SNP), or people living in long-term care (I-SNP). You have to qualify to enroll in one.

Step 5: Compare on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder

The official comparison tool is at medicare.gov/plan-compare. Create (or sign in to) your Medicare.gov account and enter your prescriptions and preferred pharmacies. The tool will estimate your yearly drug costs under each plan and show you which plans include your drugs. You can also:

• Filter for HMO, PPO or Part D-only plans.
• See each plan's Star Rating, which CMS updates each year.
• Save plans to a list to compare side by side.

If you prefer to talk to a person, 1-800-MEDICARE is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Step 6: Mark the deadline, then act (or don't)

December 7, 2026 is the last day to make an Annual Enrollment change for 2027. If you are happy with how your plan looks in 2027, you do not have to do anything — it renews automatically.

If you are in a Medicare Advantage plan and change your mind in January, you still get one more chance: the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period runs January 1 – March 31, 2027, and lets you switch to a different Medicare Advantage plan or go back to Original Medicare once.