Medicare Advantage

Nine carriers, 41 plans: the Lincoln 2026 picture

For 2027, Lincoln is looking at 37 Medicare Advantage plans: 18 new, 18 gone since 2026, and 7 still here but changed in their terms, 4 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Lancaster County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

For Medicare shoppers in Lincoln, the 2027 Advantage lineup is less about a single "best pick" and more about understanding who's selling plans and what kind of plan each one is. Lincoln sits in Lancaster County, where nine carriers are offering Medicare Advantage plans for the coming year — a mix of HMOs, HMO-POS plans, PPOs and Special Needs Plans built for people with specific situations.

Before you compare premiums or drug lists, it helps to know the shape of the market and the language on the plan cards. Here's a plain-English guide to both.

Who's selling Medicare Advantage plans in Lancaster County

For 2027, nine carriers are offering Medicare Advantage plans in Lancaster County. Listed alphabetically, they are:

• Aetna (CVS Health) — 6 plans (HMO, HMO-POS, PPO; 1 Special Needs Plan)
• Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska — 4 plans (HMO, PPO)
• Centene (WellCare) — 7 plans (HMO-POS, PPO; 2 Special Needs Plans)
• Great Plains Medicare Advantage — 2 plans (HMO; 2 Special Needs Plans)
• Humana — 7 plans (HMO, PPO; 2 Special Needs Plans)
• Medica — 4 plans (PPO)
• Molina Healthcare of Illinois — 1 plan (HMO; 1 Special Needs Plan)
• MyAdvocate Medicare Advantage — 2 plans (HMO-POS)
• UnitedHealthcare — 8 plans (HMO-POS, PPO; 4 Special Needs Plans)

The table below lists every plan by name and type. The number of plans a carrier offers doesn't tell you whether that carrier is a good fit — it just tells you how many doors that carrier has open in the county.

HMO, HMO-POS and PPO: what the letters actually mean

Most of the 41 plans in Lancaster County fall into one of three network types.

HMO (Health Maintenance Organization). You choose doctors and hospitals inside the plan's network, and you usually need a referral from your primary care doctor to see a specialist. Out-of-network care is generally not covered except in emergencies.

HMO-POS (HMO with a Point-of-Service option). This is an HMO that lets you go outside the network for certain services, typically at a higher cost. It's a middle-ground option between a strict HMO and a PPO. There are 12 HMO-POS plans in the county.

PPO (Preferred Provider Organization). PPOs have a network too, but you can generally see out-of-network providers who accept the plan, usually at a higher cost share. Referrals typically aren't required.

What about PFFS plans?

You may hear about PFFS — Private Fee-for-Service — plans. In a PFFS plan, the insurer sets the payment terms, and any Medicare-approved provider can decide whether to accept those terms on a visit-by-visit basis. It's a different model from HMOs and PPOs.

For 2027, no PFFS plans appear in the Lancaster County lineup. Shoppers here will be choosing among HMO, HMO-POS and PPO structures, plus Special Needs Plans built on those network types.

Special Needs Plans: a separate track

Of the 41 Medicare Advantage plans in the county, 12 are Special Needs Plans (SNPs). SNPs limit enrollment to people who meet specific eligibility rules and tailor benefits and drug coverage to that group.

There are three kinds nationally:

• D-SNP (Dual Eligible SNP) — for people who have both Medicare and Medicaid.
• C-SNP (Chronic Condition SNP) — for people with certain chronic conditions, such as diabetes or heart failure.
• I-SNP (Institutional SNP) — for people who live in a long-term care facility or need that level of care at home.

In Lancaster County, the SNPs on offer for 2027 include D-SNPs from Aetna (CVS Health), Centene (WellCare), Humana and UnitedHealthcare, and I-SNPs from Great Plains Medicare Advantage. If you're not eligible for a given SNP, it isn't an option for you — that's the point of the category.

Drug coverage and the 2027 rules

All 41 Medicare Advantage plans in the county include Part D drug coverage. There are no stand-alone Part D plans listed in the county's Advantage-side data, so if you want a stand-alone drug plan you'd look at Medicare's Plan Finder to compare separately.

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

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap is $2,100.
• The Part D deductible can be no higher than $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 your drug costs across the year in monthly amounts instead of paying at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA surcharges on Part B and Part D premiums start above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

Dates to circle

• Oct. 15 – Dec. 7: Medicare Annual Enrollment Period. You can join, switch or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan.
• Jan. 1 – March 31: Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can make a one-time switch to another MA plan or return to Original Medicare (with a Part D plan if you need one).