Medicare Advantage

Comparing Medicare Plan Counts Across the Tacoma Area

For 2027, Tacoma is looking at 66 Medicare Advantage plans: 19 new, 26 gone since 2026, and 38 still here but changed on premium, deductible, plan type or name, 13 of them under a new name. Below, how the lineup shifted in Pierce County and what to compare, with no plan ranked or recommended.

Tacoma, Wash. — If you're weighing Medicare coverage this year, it helps to know what's actually on the table where you live. Plan availability isn't the same everywhere, even inside a single metro. Because Medicare Advantage and Part D options are set county by county, a short drive can put you in a different pool of choices. Here's a plain-language look at how the Tacoma area stacks up, and how to use that information when you decide.

Why plan counts differ from town to town

Medicare Advantage and stand-alone Part D plans are approved to serve specific counties, not cities. That means Tacoma's available plans are really Pierce County's available plans. Cross into King, Thurston, Kitsap, or Mason County, and the count — and the carriers behind them — can shift.

This matters if you live near a county line, split time between two homes, or are thinking about moving. The plan you have today may not follow you if your new address is in a different county.

What the Tacoma-area numbers look like

Tacoma is in Pierce County, where the 2027 Medicare landscape includes:

• 53 Medicare Advantage plans available to residents.
• 13 carriers offering Medicare Advantage with prescription drug coverage (MA-PD).
• 137,536 residents age 65 and older, according to census estimates.

That's a lot of choice in one county. A bigger menu can be a good thing, but it also means it takes some patience to sort through what fits your doctors, medications, and budget.

A note on stand-alone Part D and star ratings

The area data shows 0 stand-alone Part D plans and 0 contracts rated 4 stars or higher for this snapshot. Numbers like these come from CMS Landscape files and can shift as CMS updates its data during the year. If you rely on Original Medicare and need drug coverage, or you're checking a plan's star rating, always verify on medicare.gov's Plan Finder, which pulls the most current file.

Star Ratings, by the way, are CMS's 1-to-5 score for how a plan performs on things like customer service and care quality. They're a useful data point — not a recommendation.

How to decide when your county has a long list

When there are dozens of plans on the menu, don't start with the plans. Start with you. A few questions to work through:

1. Which doctors and hospitals do I want to keep? Check each plan's network before anything else. 2. What prescriptions do I take? Enter them into Plan Finder to see how each plan's formulary handles them. 3. Do I travel or split time between counties or states? That affects whether a network-based plan fits your life. 4. Would I rather have Original Medicare plus a Medigap policy and a stand-alone drug plan? That's a different path with its own tradeoffs.

2027 rules that apply no matter where you live

Some things don't change from county to county. For 2027:

• Part D has a $2,400 annual out-of-pocket cap on covered drugs.
• The Part D deductible maxes out at $700 (plans can set it lower).
• The old coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone as of 2025 — Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs across the year in monthly installments if you opt in.
• IRMAA surcharges for higher-income enrollees start above $109,000 for a single filer in 2026.
• Annual Enrollment Period: Oct. 15 – Dec. 7. Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: Jan. 1 – March 31.

Where to get help you can trust

Before you enroll or switch, use official, no-cost resources:

• medicare.gov — the Plan Finder tool compares plans using your ZIP, doctors, and drug list.
• 1-800-MEDICARE — 24/7 help from Medicare directly.
• SHIBA — Washington's State Health Insurance Benefits Advisors program offers free, one-on-one counseling. It's the state's SHIP.