Medicare Advantage

Webb County Medicare Advantage: 20 Plans Exiting After 2026

For 2027, Laredo is looking at 45 Medicare Advantage plans from 8 carriers: 9 new, 20 gone since 2026, and 16 continuing plans with at least one change on file, with 8 plans renamed. Below, how the lineup shifted in Webb County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

Medicare AdvantageLaredo, TX

Laredo, Texas — If you have a Medicare Advantage plan in Laredo, this fall's mail could look different than last year's. According to CMS's 2027 Medicare Advantage Landscape file for Webb County, 20 plans will not return after 2026, 9 brand-new plans are joining the market, and 8 plans are keeping their coverage area but changing names. Another 16 continuing plans have at least one change on file — a premium, deductible, plan type or name adjustment — so almost every current member will want to open the envelope marked "Annual Notice of Change" (ANOC) before December 7.

Here is what is actually changing, and the steps to take if your plan is one of the ones going away.

What "leaving," "new," and "renamed" mean

Every year, insurers file their plan lineups with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Some plans are discontinued, some are added, and some keep going with tweaks. Here is how to read the three buckets for Webb County:

• Leaving after 2026: The plan will not be offered in 2027. Members must choose a new plan or move to Original Medicare.
• New for 2027: Plans being offered for the first time next year. You can sign up during the Annual Enrollment Period.
• Renamed: Same plan, different name. Coverage continues, but the mailing you receive will look unfamiliar.

Plans not returning to Laredo in 2027

Twenty Medicare Advantage plans available in Webb County in 2026 will not be offered in 2027. If your ID card says any of these, you should be receiving a non-renewal letter from your insurer:

• Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Basic (HMO)
• Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Complete (PPO)
• Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Dental Premier (PPO)
• Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Dual Care Plus (HMO D-SNP)
• Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Health Choice (PPO)
• Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Protect (PPO)
• HealthSpring True Choice (PPO)
• Wellcare Assist (HMO)
• Wellcare Dual Access (HMO D-SNP)
• Wellcare Dual Liberty (HMO D-SNP)
• Wellcare Patriot Simple (HMO)
• Wellcare Simple (HMO)
• Wellcare Simple Open (PPO)
• Humana Gold Choice H8145-084 (PFFS)
• Humana USAA Honor Giveback (PPO)
• Prominence Beyond (HMO)
• UHC Complete Care Support TX-1A (Regional PPO C-SNP)
• UHC Dual Complete TX-D007 (HMO-POS D-SNP)
• UHC Dual Complete TX-S003 (HMO-POS D-SNP)
• UHC Dual Complete TX-V010 (HMO-POS D-SNP)

Note that Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas (HCSC) is retiring several plans under its "Blue Cross Medicare Advantage" brand while continuing to offer other plans under the HealthSpring name in Webb County — so a non-renewal letter from BCBSTX is not the same as BCBSTX exiting the county.

New plans joining Webb County for 2027

Nine plans are entering Laredo's Medicare Advantage lineup for the first time in 2027:

• Aetna Medicare QMB Only Care (HMO D-SNP)
• HealthSpring Achieve Savings (HMO C-SNP)
• HealthSpring TotalCare Plus (HMO D-SNP)
• Humana Together in Health (PPO I-SNP)
• Prominence Bridge (HMO D-SNP)
• UHC Dual Advantage TX-V11 (HMO-POS D-SNP)
• UHC Dual Complete TX-Q6 (HMO-POS D-SNP)
• UHC Dual Complete TX-S6 (HMO-POS D-SNP)
• UHC Dual Complete TX-YL2 (HMO-POS D-SNP)

Most of the new options for 2027 are Special Needs Plans — designed for people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid (D-SNP), have certain chronic conditions (C-SNP), or live in an institutional setting (I-SNP). If none of those apply to you, the choice for 2027 will mostly come from continuing plans on the roster.

Plans that were renamed

Eight plans in Webb County kept their coverage but changed names. If you get an ANOC with a new name at the top, this is why:

• Aetna Medicare Full Dual Care (HMO D-SNP) — was Aetna Medicare Dual Care (HMO D-SNP)
• Aetna Medicare Full Dual Extra Care (HMO D-SNP) — was Aetna Medicare Full Dual Care (HMO D-SNP)
• Aetna Medicare QMB Only Extra Care (HMO D-SNP) — was Aetna Medicare Partial Dual Care (HMO D-SNP)
• Aetna Medicare Signature Extra (PPO) — was Aetna Medicare Signature (PPO)
• HealthSpring Preferred Extra Savings (HMO) — was HealthSpring Preferred Full Savings (HMO)
• Wellcare Superior HealthPlan Dual Liberty Sync (HMO D-SNP) — was Wellcare Dual Liberty Sync (HMO D-SNP)
• Humana Essentials Plus Giveback (PPO) — was HumanaChoice Giveback H7617-041 (PPO)
• AARP Medicare Advantage from UHC TX-61 (Regional PPO) — was UHC Medicare Advantage TX-0030 (Regional PPO)

A rename is not automatically a change to your coverage, but insurers sometimes rename a plan at the same time they adjust it. Read the ANOC either way.

What Laredo members should do — step by step

Laredo is in Webb County, where 45 Medicare Advantage plans from 8 carriers are on file for 2027, and the table below lists every one of them. Here is how to work through the change season:

1. Find your ANOC. By late September, your insurer must send an Annual Notice of Change. It spells out what is different for 2027 — including premium, deductible, provider network, drug list and cost-sharing. Read it, even if your plan is continuing.

2. If your plan is leaving, you have extra time. When a plan does not renew, CMS grants a Special Enrollment Period that runs through the end of February. You can use it to join another Medicare Advantage plan or switch to Original Medicare (and add a stand-alone Part D plan). If you do nothing, in most cases you will be returned to Original Medicare without drug coverage — so acting is important.

3. Use the Annual Enrollment Period. October 15 through December 7, 2026 is when anyone can add, drop, or switch a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan for the coming year. Changes take effect January 1, 2027.

4. Check your doctors and your drug list. Even if your plan is continuing under the same name, provider networks and drug formularies can change year to year.

5. Know the Part D rules. For 2026, the maximum Part D deductible is $615 and out-of-pocket drug costs are capped at $2,100. For 2027, the Part D maximum deductible is $700 and the out-of-pocket cap is $2,400. The coverage gap ("donut hole") no longer exists — Part D has three phases. The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs across the year in monthly installments if that helps your budget.

6. If you made a Medicare Advantage choice you regret, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (January 1 – March 31) lets you switch one time to a different MA plan or to Original Medicare.

Where to get personalized help

Because these choices depend on your doctors, your prescriptions and your income (IRMAA surcharges start above $109,000 for a single filer in 2026), a plan finder alone will not answer everything. Free, un