Medicare Advantage

Before AEP ends: Lubbock dual plan choices for 2027

Lubbock County has 38 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 19 plans are not coming back, 7 are new, and 24 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 9 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Lubbock, not which plan to pick.

LUBBOCK, Texas — Fall 2026. If you have both Medicare and Medicaid in Lubbock County, your plan choices for 2027 are coming into focus. The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) landscape files show 13 Dual Special Needs Plans (D-SNPs) will be offered in the county next year, from four carriers. The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and any change you make takes effect January 1, 2027.

D-SNPs are a type of Medicare Advantage plan built for people who qualify for both programs. Below is what is on the table in Lubbock County for 2027, who can enroll, and the special rules that let dual-eligible residents change plans more often than other people on Medicare.

What is a D-SNP, and who qualifies in Lubbock for 2027?

A Dual Special Needs Plan is a Medicare Advantage plan limited to people who have both Medicare and Medicaid. In Texas, Medicaid eligibility and the specific "dual" category are set by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC), not by Medicare or the plan.

There are two broad groups a D-SNP may serve:

• Full-benefit dual eligibles, who get the full range of Texas Medicaid benefits in addition to Medicare.
• Partial-benefit dual eligibles, most commonly the Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) group, where Medicaid helps pay Medicare premiums and cost-sharing but does not cover full Medicaid services.

Some D-SNPs are designed for the full-dual group; others accept only QMB members; a few accept both. The plan's name often signals the group it serves (for example, plans with "Full Dual" or "QMB" in the title). The best way to confirm which category you fall into is to contact Texas HHSC (Medicaid) and 1-800-MEDICARE.

Which D-SNPs are offered in Lubbock County for 2027?

CMS's 2027 landscape file lists 13 D-SNPs for Lubbock County from four carriers. In alphabetical order by carrier:

• Aetna (CVS Health) — 4 D-SNPs: Aetna Medicare Full Dual Care (HMO D-SNP); Aetna Medicare Full Dual Extra Care (HMO D-SNP); Aetna Medicare QMB Only Care (HMO D-SNP); Aetna Medicare QMB Only Extra Care (HMO D-SNP).
• Centene (WellCare) — 2 D-SNPs: Wellcare Superior HealthPlan Dual Liberty Sync (HMO D-SNP); Wellcare Superior HealthPlan Dual Reserve Value (HMO D-SNP).
• Elevance Health (Anthem) — 3 D-SNPs: Wellpoint Dual Advantage (HMO D-SNP); Wellpoint Dual Advantage Plus (HMO D-SNP); Wellpoint Full Dual Advantage Aligned (HMO D-SNP).
• UnitedHealthcare — 4 D-SNPs: UHC Dual Advantage TX-V10 (HMO-POS D-SNP); UHC Dual Complete TX-Q8 (HMO-POS D-SNP); UHC Dual Complete TX-S001 (Regional PPO D-SNP); UHC Dual Complete TX-S5 (HMO-POS D-SNP).

Several of these are new for 2027 (including plans from Aetna, Centene and Elevance), and several carry renamed versions of 2026 plans — your Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) explains what changed if you are already enrolled. The table on this page lists every plan in the county.

For context, Lubbock County's full 2027 Medicare Advantage lineup also includes 2 Chronic Condition SNPs (C-SNPs) and 3 Institutional SNPs (I-SNPs); those serve different groups and are not for dual eligibility alone.

How often can a dual-eligible person change plans?

Unlike most Medicare beneficiaries, people with Medicaid or Extra Help get extra chances to change plans during the year, not just during the October 15 – December 7 window.

Under current CMS rules, most dual-eligible people have a monthly special enrollment opportunity that lets them, once per month:

• Join an integrated D-SNP (a D-SNP aligned with their Medicaid managed care plan), or
• Drop a Medicare Advantage plan and return to Original Medicare with a stand-alone Part D drug plan.

In addition, if your Medicaid status changes — you gain, lose, or move between dual categories — you generally get a separate special enrollment period to adjust your Medicare coverage. These rules have changed in recent years and are still being phased in, so always confirm what applies to you today by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), 24/7, or checking medicare.gov.

How do I confirm my Medicare and Medicaid eligibility?

Three quick checks will tell you where you stand:

1. Medicare: Call 1-800-MEDICARE or sign in at medicare.gov to see your Part A and Part B status and any current plan enrollment. 2. Texas Medicaid: Contact Texas Health and Human Services at 2-1-1 (or yourtexasbenefits.com) to confirm whether you have full Medicaid, QMB, SLMB, QI or another category. The category decides which D-SNPs you can join. 3. Extra Help with drug costs: The Social Security Administration decides Extra Help (also called the Low-Income Subsidy). Apply or check status at ssa.gov or 1-800-772-1213.

Bring the result of all three to any plan comparison. A D-SNP can only enroll you if the carrier can verify your Medicaid level with the state.

What should Lubbock residents do before December 7, 2026?

Nothing happens automatically if you do nothing — your current plan renews for 2027 if it is still offered, with the changes described in your ANOC that arrived in September. If you want a different plan for January 1, 2027, you have until December 7, 2026 to make a change during Annual Enrollment. Dual-eligible residents may also use their monthly switching opportunity outside that window.

A few things worth knowing for the 2027 plan year:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026).
• The Part D maximum deductible is $700 in 2027 (up from $615 in 2026).
• CMS has not yet announced the 2027 Part B premium and deductible or the 2027 IRMAA brackets; those are usually published in November.

Use the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov to compare plans with your own drug list and pharmacies, or call 1-800-MEDICARE for help in Spanish or English.