Medicare Advantage

13 brand-new Medicare Advantage plans in Winston-Salem for 2027: how to check one before you switch

Forsyth County has 97 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 15 plans are not coming back, 13 are new, and 41 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 16 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Winston-Salem, not which plan to pick.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — When the 2027 Medicare Advantage lineup opens for enrollment on Oct. 15, 2026, shoppers in and around Winston-Salem will see 13 plans that were not on the shelf a year ago. New plans can look appealing on paper, but because they are brand new, they have no Star Rating history and no track record with local doctors yet. Here is who is offering them, what type each one is, and how to check a new plan against your own doctors and prescriptions before the Dec. 7, 2026 deadline.

Which Medicare Advantage plans are new in Winston-Salem for 2027?

Winston-Salem is in Forsyth County, where CMS lists 13 Medicare Advantage plans as new for 2027 — meaning they were not offered to the county for 2026. The 2027 county lineup has 97 plans in total, so new plans make up a small slice of what is available.

The full carrier-by-carrier list appears in the table below. In alphabetical order by carrier, the 13 new plans for 2027 are:

• Aetna (CVS Health) — Aetna Medicare Chronic Care (HMO C-SNP), with drug coverage
• Devoted Health — DEVOTED C-SNP GIVEBACK EXTRAS 032 NC (HMO C-SNP), with drug coverage; DEVOTED GIVEBACK EXTRAS 038 NC (HMO), with drug coverage
• HealthSpring — HealthSpring Achieve (HMO C-SNP), with drug coverage
• HealthTeam Advantage — HealthTeam Advantage Thrive Plan (HMO), with drug coverage
• Humana — Humana Gold Plus Giveback H1036-343 (HMO-POS), with drug coverage; Humana Gold Plus H1036-137 (HMO-POS), with drug coverage; HumanaChoice H7617-122 (PPO), with drug coverage
• Provider Partners Health Plans — Provider Partners North Carolina Community Plan (HMO I-SNP), with drug coverage; Provider Partners North Carolina Essential Plan (HMO I-SNP), with drug coverage
• PruittHealth Premier — PruittHealth Premier (HMO I-SNP), with drug coverage
• UnitedHealthcare — UHC Dual Complete NC-Q2 (HMO-POS D-SNP), with drug coverage; UHC Dual Complete NC-S3 (HMO-POS D-SNP), with drug coverage

All 13 new plans include Part D prescription drug coverage.

What plan types are the new 2027 plans in Forsyth County?

The 13 new plans in Winston-Salem's county cover three Medicare Advantage structures: HMO, HMO-POS, and PPO. Twelve of the 13 are HMO or HMO-POS plans; one is a PPO (HumanaChoice H7617-122).

Those labels matter because they shape how you use the plan. HMO plans generally ask you to stay in network and use a primary care doctor. HMO-POS plans are HMOs with a limited point-of-service option to go out of network for certain services. PPOs are usually more flexible about seeing out-of-network providers, though at a different cost share. The specifics live in each plan's Evidence of Coverage.

How many of the new Winston-Salem plans are Special Needs Plans?

Of the 13 new Medicare Advantage plans for 2027 in Forsyth County, 10 are Special Needs Plans (SNPs). SNPs are built for people who meet a specific condition.

• Dual-eligible SNPs (D-SNPs) are for people who have both Medicare and Medicaid. The two new UnitedHealthcare plans — UHC Dual Complete NC-Q2 and UHC Dual Complete NC-S3 — are D-SNPs.
• Chronic condition SNPs (C-SNPs) are for people living with qualifying chronic illnesses. Aetna Medicare Chronic Care, DEVOTED C-SNP GIVEBACK EXTRAS 032 NC, and HealthSpring Achieve are new C-SNPs for 2027.
• Institutional SNPs (I-SNPs) are for people who live in or need the level of care of a nursing facility. The two new Provider Partners plans and the new PruittHealth Premier plan are I-SNPs.

You can only enroll in a SNP if you meet its eligibility rules. If you do not, the plan is not an option for you, no matter how it looks.

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

A brand-new plan has no Star Rating yet and no local track record for a shopper to lean on. CMS Star Ratings are based on a plan's past performance on measures like customer service, care quality, and member complaints. A plan in its first year has not been scored, because there is not yet a full year of data behind it.

A renewing plan, by contrast, has that history — and if it is renewing in your area, it also comes with an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) each fall. The ANOC spells out what is changing from 2026 to 2027: the premium, deductible, copays, formulary, provider network, and extra benefits. New plans do not have a prior year to compare against, so you are reading the 2027 details on their own.

That is not a reason to choose or avoid a new plan. It is a reason to look carefully at the two things that matter most for most people: whether your doctors are in the network, and whether your prescriptions are on the formulary at a cost you can live with.

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

The quickest check is on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder. Here is a practical sequence to run through before the Dec. 7, 2026 deadline:

1. Make your lists first. Write down every prescription you take (name, dose, how often) and every doctor, specialist, and hospital you want to keep using. 2. Enter your drugs and pharmacy on Plan Finder. The tool at medicare.gov will show each 2027 plan's drug costs for your specific prescriptions, including whether a drug is on the formulary and what tier it sits on. 3. Check the provider directory. Click through to the plan's own provider search, or call the plan, and confirm each doctor and hospital is in network for 2027. Networks can change year to year. 4. Read the Summary of Benefits. For a new plan, this is where you learn the premium, deductible, copays, and extra benefits — there is no prior year to compare it to. 5. Call if anything is unclear. 1-800-MEDICARE is open 24/7, and plans must give you an accurate 2027 directory and formulary on request.

For 2027, Medicare's Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 (up from $2,100 in 2026), and the Part D maximum deductible rises to $700 (up from $615 in 2026). CMS announces the 2027 Part B premium, deductible, and IRMAA brackets later in the fall — typically in November — so those figures are not final yet.

What happens if I do nothing by Dec. 7, 2026?

If you take no action during the Annual Enrollment Period (Oct. 15 – Dec. 7, 2026), you keep what you have. Your current Medicare Advantage or Part D plan renews automatically on Jan. 1, 2027, with any changes described in its Annual Notice of Change. If your current plan is not being offered for 2027, your plan will tell you in writing, and you will have a special period to pick a new one.

Medicare Advantage members also have the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period from Jan. 1 to March 31, 2027, which allows one change — switching to a different Medicare Advantage plan or going back to Original Medicare.