Medicare Advantage

Las Vegas Medicare in 2027: the ANOC checklist to run before Dec. 7

For 2027, Las Vegas is looking at 72 Medicare Advantage plans: 9 new, 11 gone since 2026, and 33 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 15 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Clark County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

It is fall 2026, and the thick envelope sitting on kitchen tables across Las Vegas is doing a job most of us would rather skip: it is telling you how your Medicare plan will change on January 1, 2027. That booklet — the Annual Notice of Change, or ANOC — is the single most useful document you will get this season. The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and anything you change in that window takes effect at the start of the new year.

Here is a plain checklist for Las Vegas residents to work through before the December 7 deadline.

Start with the ANOC — and read it next to last year's booklet

The Annual Notice of Change arrives by late September. It is written to show you, line by line, what is different between your 2026 plan and the 2027 version of that same plan. Put it next to your current Evidence of Coverage (the thicker book) and look for:

• The monthly premium, the medical deductible, and the Part D drug deductible.
• Primary care, specialist, urgent care and emergency room copays.
• The annual out-of-pocket maximum for medical care.
• Extra benefits you actually use — dental, vision, hearing, over-the-counter, fitness, transportation.
• The drug tiers your prescriptions sit on, and any new prior-authorization or step-therapy rules.

A single number moving is not a reason to panic. A number moving on something you use every month is worth a second look.

Check your doctors and Las Vegas hospitals for 2027

Networks change every year. A clinic that was in-network in 2026 may not be in 2027, and the reverse is also true. Before December 7:

1. Call your primary care doctor's billing office and ask, by plan name, whether they will be in-network for 2027. 2. Do the same for any specialist you see regularly. 3. If you expect to use a specific Las Vegas hospital system, confirm it is contracted with your 2027 plan — not just "accepts Medicare." 4. For HMO and HMO-POS plans, confirm your assigned primary care provider is still participating.

Clark County's Medicare Advantage lineup is a mix of HMO, HMO-POS and PPO plans; the table below shows the plan type for each one, which matters because PPOs generally let you go out of network at a higher cost, while HMOs usually do not.

Check your prescriptions against the 2027 drug list

Every Medicare Advantage plan with drug coverage, and every stand-alone Part D plan, publishes a new formulary each year. Pull your current prescription bottles and look up each drug on your 2027 plan's formulary. Note:

• The tier (which drives the copay).
• Whether a prior authorization, quantity limit or step therapy is new for 2027.
• Whether the pharmacy you use is a "preferred" pharmacy on the 2027 network.

Two program-level numbers are worth knowing. In 2027, the Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 (up from $2,100 in 2026), and the Part D maximum deductible is $700 (up from $615 in 2026). If your drug spending runs high, the Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread those costs across the year in monthly installments.

CMS has not yet announced the 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible, or the 2027 IRMAA income brackets. Those usually publish in November.

See the full Clark County lineup

Las Vegas is in Clark County, where 12 carriers offer 74 Medicare Advantage plans for 2026, all with drug coverage: 38 HMOs, 21 HMO-POS plans and 15 PPOs, including 34 Special Needs Plans for people with specific chronic conditions or Medicaid eligibility. The carriers available locally are Aetna (CVS Health), Alignment Health Plan, Blue Cross Blue Shield (HCSC), Centene (WellCare), Champion Health Plan, Elevance Health (Anthem), Humana, Kaiser Permanente, Molina Healthcare of Nevada, SCAN Health Plan, Select Health and UnitedHealthcare.

The table below lists every plan with its type. For 2027 specifics, use the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov once October's updates post — it will show the 2027 premium, drug costs for your prescriptions, and star ratings side by side.

What happens if you do nothing

Nothing dramatic. If your current plan is offered in Clark County again in 2027, it renews automatically with the changes outlined in its ANOC. The risk is not that you lose coverage overnight — it is that a drug moved tiers, a copay went up, or your doctor left the network, and you did not notice until February. That is what the next few weeks are for.

If your plan is being discontinued for 2027, the carrier must send a separate non-renewal notice, and you get a Special Enrollment Period to choose something else.

Where to get personalized help

• Medicare.gov — the Plan Finder compares 2027 plans using your actual prescription list and pharmacy.
• 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, for personalized questions about your enrollment and coverage.
• Your current carrier's member services line, printed on the back of your plan ID card, for ANOC questions.