Medicare Advantage

Arlington Medicare Advantage in 2027: how the HMO, HMO-POS, PPO and PFFS choices stack up

People in Arlington can choose from 83 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027, against 89 this year. 28 of this year’s plans are gone, 22 are new to Tarrant County, and 32 that continue have changed their premium, deductible, plan type or name, 10 of them under a new name.

Fall 2026 — If you live in Arlington and are weighing a Medicare Advantage plan for 2027, one of the first forks in the road is the plan type. HMO, HMO-POS, PPO or PFFS — those four letters shape how you see doctors, whether you need a referral, and what happens if you need care outside the plan's network. Arlington is in Tarrant County, where CMS lists 83 Medicare Advantage plans from 12 carriers for 2027, and the mix leans toward network-based HMOs with a healthy slate of PPOs.

The Annual Enrollment Period 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 if it is still offered, with any changes spelled out in its Annual Notice of Change (ANOC).

How Tarrant County's 2027 plans break down by type

For plan year 2027, CMS's Landscape file shows 83 Medicare Advantage plans available in Tarrant County, from 12 carriers. By type, that's 37 HMO plans, 22 HMO-POS plans, 23 PPO plans and 1 PFFS plan. Combining HMO and HMO-POS, 59 of the 83 plans use some form of HMO structure.

That mix matters because plan type is not a detail — it governs the rules you'll live with all year. The table below lists every plan available in the county, with its type and carrier.

What an HMO means (and why so many plans use it)

With a traditional HMO (Health Maintenance Organization), you choose a primary care doctor, use the plan's network for most care, and typically need a referral to see a specialist. Out-of-network care is generally not covered except in an emergency.

For 2027, the carriers offering HMO plans in Tarrant County are Aetna (CVS Health), Centene (WellCare), Elevance Health (Anthem), HealthSpring, Humana, Molina Healthcare of Texas, Inc., Provider Partners Health Plans, Texas Independence Health Plan, and Verda Health Plan of Texas.

HMOs can be a good fit if your doctors are already in-network and you don't travel much. If you spend part of the year outside the Dallas–Fort Worth area, confirm how the plan handles care while you're away.

HMO-POS: an HMO with a point-of-service door

An HMO-POS (Point of Service) plan is an HMO with a limited ability to go outside the network for certain services, usually at a higher cost. The rules on what the "POS" piece covers vary a lot plan to plan, so the Evidence of Coverage is where to look.

Carriers offering HMO-POS plans in Tarrant County for 2027 are Baylor Scott & White Health Plan, Elevance Health (Anthem), ProCare Advantage, and UnitedHealthcare.

If you like the structure of an HMO but want a little flexibility — say, for a specialist in another county — HMO-POS can be worth a closer look.

PPO: more flexibility, different rules

A PPO (Preferred Provider Organization) does not require a primary care doctor or referrals, and it does cover out-of-network care — just at a higher cost-share than in-network care. There are local PPOs and Regional PPOs; both show up in the 2027 Tarrant County lineup.

Carriers offering PPO plans in Tarrant County for 2027 are Aetna (CVS Health), Baylor Scott & White Health Plan, HealthSpring, Humana, and UnitedHealthcare.

PPOs often appeal to people who split time between states, see specialists directly, or want the option to use a provider the plan hasn't contracted with. The trade-off is that out-of-network care still costs more, and not every provider will agree to bill the plan.

PFFS: a smaller, different kind of plan

PFFS stands for Private Fee-for-Service. These plans set the terms of payment, and you can see any Medicare-approved provider who accepts the plan's terms and agrees to treat you — which is not automatic. For 2027, there is one PFFS plan available in Tarrant County, offered by Humana.

If a PFFS plan is on your list, call the providers you want to use and confirm they'll accept it before you enroll.

What's shifting for 2027

A few program-level numbers are already set for 2027. The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 (from $2,100 in 2026), and the Part D maximum deductible rises to $700 (from $615 in 2026). CMS publishes the 2027 Part B standard premium, deductible and IRMAA income brackets later in the fall, typically in November.

Locally, Tarrant County's lineup is also moving. For 2027, 28 plans are not returning, 22 are new, and 10 have been renamed. That's a reminder to open your plan's ANOC when it arrives — even if your plan is renewing, the details inside can change.