Medicare Advantage

Before You Compare Baltimore Medicare Advantage Plans

Baltimore city has 24 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 9 plans are not coming back, 2 are new, and 9 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 1 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Baltimore, not which plan to pick.

Medicare AdvantageBaltimore, MD

Picking a Medicare Advantage plan in Baltimore starts with two questions: who sells one, and what kind of plan is it? For 2027, Baltimore residents have a mix of HMOs, a few PPOs, and a large group of Special Needs Plans to choose from — and the differences between those types matter more than most shoppers expect.

Baltimore is in Baltimore city, where CMS lists 23 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027, offered by 8 carriers. Compared with 2026, 21 plans continue, 2 are new, 9 are not returning, and 1 has been renamed; 8 continuing plans change something in their terms, detailed in each plan's ANOC. The table below lists every plan by carrier. This article walks through who those carriers are and what HMO, HMO-POS, PPO, PFFS and the Special Needs Plan categories actually mean, so you can narrow the list before you compare details.

Who sells Medicare Advantage in Baltimore for 2027

Ten carriers offer Medicare Advantage plans in Baltimore city for 2026. In alphabetical order, they are:

• Alterwood Advantage — 6 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Blue Cross Blue Shield (HCSC) — 5 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield Advantage DualPrime — 1 plan (HMO; 1 Special Needs)
• CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield Medicare Advantage — 2 plans (PPO)
• Communicare Advantage — 2 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Humana — 2 plans (HMO)
• Kaiser Permanente — 5 plans (HMO, HMO-POS; 2 Special Needs)
• KeyCare Advantage — 2 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs)
• Provider Partners Health Plans — 3 plans (HMO; 3 Special Needs)
• UnitedHealthcare — 3 plans (HMO, HMO-POS, PPO; 3 Special Needs)

The number of plans a carrier offers doesn't tell you which is a better fit. Some carriers keep a narrow lineup on purpose; others split plans by county, condition, or eligibility group. Use the count as a rough sense of variety, not a ranking.

What HMO, HMO-POS, PPO and PFFS actually mean

Every Medicare Advantage plan falls into a plan type, and the type sets the basic rules for how you use it.

HMO (Health Maintenance Organization). You use doctors, hospitals, and other providers in the plan's network. You usually pick a primary care doctor, and you often need a referral to see a specialist. Care outside the network is generally not covered, except in emergencies. Twenty-five of Baltimore's 31 plans are HMOs.

HMO-POS (HMO with a Point-of-Service option). Same basic HMO structure, but the plan allows some care outside the network, usually for specific services and often at a higher cost. Baltimore has three HMO-POS plans.

PPO (Preferred Provider Organization). You can see any Medicare-approved provider, but you pay less when you stay in network. Referrals are usually not required. Baltimore has three PPO plans.

PFFS (Private Fee-for-Service). These plans set their own payment terms with providers, and providers can decide visit by visit whether to accept them. No PFFS plans are listed in Baltimore city for 2027.

Special Needs Plans: who they're for

Special Needs Plans (SNPs) are Medicare Advantage plans built for people who meet specific eligibility rules. Of Baltimore's 31 plans, 17 are SNPs. There are three kinds:

• D-SNP (Dual Eligible). For people who have both Medicare and Medicaid. These plans coordinate benefits between the two programs.
• C-SNP (Chronic Condition). For people with a qualifying chronic condition, such as diabetes or certain heart or lung conditions. Each C-SNP is designed around the condition it serves.
• I-SNP (Institutional). For people who live in a nursing home or need a similar level of care at home.

If you don't meet the eligibility rules for a SNP, you can't enroll in one — so on a first pass, SNPs may or may not belong on your shortlist.

Drug coverage and 2027 program rules

All 23 Medicare Advantage plans in Baltimore for 2027 include prescription drug coverage. There are no stand-alone Part D plans listed for the area, but Part D is generally bundled into Medicare Advantage here.

A few program-level facts to keep in mind for 2027:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100.
• The Part D maximum deductible is $615.
• The old coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone as of 2025; Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs across the year in monthly amounts. It's optional and free to opt into.
• IRMAA surcharges for higher-income enrollees start above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

How to narrow the list

A practical order of questions:

1. Do I qualify for a Special Needs Plan? If yes (dual eligibility, a qualifying condition, or institutional care), those plans are worth looking at first. 2. How important is provider choice? If you want the freedom to see out-of-network providers without a referral, the PPO plans in the area may fit better than the HMOs. 3. Are my doctors in the network? Every plan draws its own network. Check each one directly. 4. What do my prescriptions look like on each plan's formulary? Drug lists and tiers vary carrier by carrier.

The Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov lets you enter your ZIP code, your drugs, and your preferred pharmacies to compare plans side by side.