Medicare Advantage

Before December 7: how to vet a brand-new plan

Hudson County has 48 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 10 plans are not coming back, 10 are new, and 12 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 2 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Jersey City, not which plan to pick.

JERSEY CITY — Ten Medicare Advantage plans that were not sold in Hudson County this year will be on the shelf for 2027, according to the CMS Medicare Advantage Landscape Source Files for the current and coming plan years. Five carriers are behind them, and one of those carriers — Devoted Health — is new to the county's lineup. For anyone comparing options between now and the December 7, 2026 deadline, these are the plans with no local track record yet.

Which Medicare Advantage plans are new in Jersey City for 2027?

In Hudson County, which Jersey City sits in, 10 of the 48 Medicare Advantage plans offered for 2027 are new — meaning they were not available in the county in 2026. They come from five carriers, listed alphabetically below, and all 10 include drug coverage.

• Devoted Health: DEVOTED C-SNP CHOICE ENHANCED 004 NJ (PPO C-SNP); DEVOTED C-SNP CHOICE GIVEBACK EXTRAS 005 NJ (PPO C-SNP); DEVOTED C-SNP CHOICE PLUS 003 NJ (PPO C-SNP); DEVOTED CHOICE 001 NJ (PPO); DEVOTED CHOICE GIVEBACK 002 NJ (PPO); DEVOTED CHOICE GIVEBACK EXTRAS 006 NJ (PPO).
• Elevance Health (Anthem): Wellpoint Extra Help (HMO).
• Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey: Horizon Specialty Care (HMO C-SNP).
• Humana: HumanaChoice Giveback H7617-127 (PPO).
• UnitedHealthcare: UHC Complete Care NJ-8 (HMO-POS C-SNP).

The table on this page lists every 2027 Medicare Advantage plan in the county, new and returning, with its type and whether it includes drug coverage.

What plan types and Special Needs Plans are among the new ones?

Among the 10 new 2027 plans in Hudson County, there are both general plans and Special Needs Plans (SNPs). Devoted Health's six new entries include three PPOs open to anyone with Medicare and three PPO C-SNPs — Chronic Condition SNPs, which are limited to people with certain qualifying health conditions. Humana's new HumanaChoice Giveback H7617-127 is a general PPO.

Three of the 10 are HMO-style plans. Elevance Health's new Wellpoint Extra Help is a standard HMO. Horizon's new Horizon Specialty Care is an HMO C-SNP, and UnitedHealthcare's new UHC Complete Care NJ-8 is an HMO-POS C-SNP. A C-SNP has eligibility rules tied to a diagnosis, so a plan's own materials will spell out who qualifies. All 10 of the new plans include Part D drug coverage.

How is a brand-new plan different from a renewing one?

A new plan is one a carrier is offering in Hudson County for the first time in 2027. The practical difference is that there is no local history to look at — no prior-year network, no prior-year drug list, no Star Rating for that specific plan yet. Medicare assigns Star Ratings based on past performance data, so a plan without a track record will not have its own rating in its first year. That is a disclosure, not a quality judgment.

A renewing plan, by contrast, has an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) that compares what it covered in 2026 with what it will cover in 2027. If you are already in a plan that is coming back, that ANOC — mailed in late September — is the single most useful document you have. For 2027 in Hudson County overall, CMS data show 10 plans are not returning, 10 are new, and 2 have been renamed.

How do I check a new plan against my doctors and prescriptions before December 7?

The fastest way is the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov. Enter your ZIP code, add your current prescriptions with the exact doses, and add the pharmacy you use. The tool will show which plans in Hudson County cover each drug, what tier it sits on, and whether any step-therapy or prior-authorization rules apply. You can also call 1-800-MEDICARE around the clock to walk through the same comparison with a representative.

Networks are a separate check. Plan Finder lists providers, but the most reliable source is the plan's own online directory or a call to the plan to confirm your primary care doctor, specialists and preferred hospital are in-network for 2027. For a C-SNP, also confirm you meet the eligibility rules before enrolling. If you want the full fine print — covered services, cost-sharing, rules — that lives in the plan's Evidence of Coverage.

What are the key 2027 Medicare dates and figures to know?

The Annual Enrollment Period for 2027 coverage runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and any change you make takes effect January 1, 2027. If you do nothing, your current plan renews for 2027 as described in its ANOC. There is also a Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period from January 1 to March 31, 2027, during which Advantage enrollees can make one change.

CMS has confirmed a few 2027 figures that apply nationwide: the Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 in 2027 (from $2,100 in 2026), and the Part D maximum deductible rises to $700 in 2027 (from $615 in 2026). The 2027 Part B standard premium, Part B deductible and IRMAA income brackets have not yet been announced; CMS typically publishes them in the fall, usually November.