Medicare Advantage

Opened Your ANOC Yet? A Lubbock AEP Checklist

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 is Medicare's annual review season, and for people on the South Plains the window to change a 2027 plan runs Oct. 15 through Dec. 7, 2026. Any choice you make inside those dates takes effect Jan. 1, 2027. If you do nothing, your current plan simply rolls into next year with whatever changes it has already told you about.

That is why the Annual Notice of Change letter that landed in your mailbox in late September matters so much. It is the one document that spells out, in plain terms, how your 2027 coverage will differ from your 2026 coverage. This checklist walks Lubbock readers through what to open, what to compare, and where to look things up before the Dec. 7 deadline.

What is the Medicare deadline for Lubbock residents in 2026?

The deadline is Dec. 7, 2026. That is the last day of the Annual Enrollment Period for 2027 coverage, which opened Oct. 15, 2026. Any plan change you make between those dates — switching Medicare Advantage plans, moving between Original Medicare and Advantage, adding or dropping a stand-alone Part D drug plan — begins Jan. 1, 2027.

If you miss it, you generally have to wait for another enrollment window. People already on Medicare Advantage get one more chance between Jan. 1 and March 31, 2027, to switch Advantage plans or return to Original Medicare, but that window has its own rules.

How do I read my Annual Notice of Change for 2027?

Open the ANOC the same way every year: side by side with last year's. The letter is organized to show your 2026 plan on the left and your 2027 plan on the right. Focus on four lines.

• The monthly premium and the drug deductible.
• The copays or coinsurance for primary care, specialists, hospital stays and the emergency room.
• The maximum out-of-pocket amount for the year.
• The drug tier structure and the pharmacy network, including whether your preferred Lubbock pharmacy is still "preferred."

The ANOC will not tell you whether your doctor is still in network next year — that is a separate check (see below).

How do I check my Lubbock doctors, hospitals and prescriptions against the 2027 plan?

Do three separate checks, because one does not cover the others.

Doctors and hospitals: call your plan's member services line and ask whether each of your providers — your primary care doctor, specialists, and the Lubbock-area hospital you prefer, whether that is Covenant, UMC or another facility — will be in network in 2027. Networks can change on Jan. 1. Ask the provider's office too; sometimes they know before the plan directory updates.

Prescriptions: pull up the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov, enter each drug and the dose, and look at the 2027 formulary for your plan. Tier changes and prior-authorization rules often shift in January.

Pharmacy: confirm your pharmacy is still a preferred in-network pharmacy for 2027. The cost difference between preferred and standard can be real.

How many Medicare Advantage plans are offered in Lubbock County for 2027?

Lubbock is in Lubbock County, where the current 2026 CMS Landscape file lists 50 Medicare Advantage plans from 9 carriers. The carriers serving the county are Aetna (CVS Health), American Health Advantage of Texas, Baylor Scott & White Health Plan, Blue Cross Blue Shield (HCSC), Centene (WellCare), Elevance Health (Anthem), Humana, Provider Partners Health Plans and UnitedHealthcare. Of the 50 plans, 20 are HMOs, 5 are HMO-POS, 23 are PPOs and 2 are PFFS; 21 are Special Needs Plans aimed at people with specific conditions or dual Medicare-Medicaid status, and 43 include drug coverage.

The table on this page lists every plan by carrier. Use it as your starting shortlist, then narrow by what the ANOC and your doctor and drug checks tell you. CMS publishes the final 2027 county landscape in early October 2026.

What 2027 figures are already confirmed, and what is still coming?

CMS has confirmed the Part D numbers. In 2027, the Part D out-of-pocket cap will be $2,400 (up from $2,100 in 2026), and the maximum Part D deductible a plan can charge will be $700 (up from $615 in 2026). The Part D national base beneficiary premium for 2027 is $41.33 — that is a formula input, not what any particular plan will charge.

Not yet announced: the 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible, and the 2027 IRMAA income brackets that add surcharges for higher earners. CMS typically releases those in November. If you are close to an IRMAA threshold, wait for the official numbers before locking in a budget.

Where should I go for personalized Medicare help in Lubbock?

Three places give answers tied to your situation.

• Medicare.gov, especially the Plan Finder, for side-by-side cost estimates once 2027 plans are loaded.
• 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227), available 24/7, for questions about your enrollment, eligibility or a specific plan letter.
• Your current plan's member services line, printed on your member ID card, for questions about your own 2027 ANOC.

Keep notes on who you spoke with and when. If a provider's status changes between the call and January, that record helps.