Plan exits · Dallas–Fort Worth, Texas

Is UHC's TX-0005 PPO Ending in Dallas–Fort Worth for 2027?

Yes. The AARP Medicare Advantage from UHC TX-0005 (PPO) is not in the federal 2027 plan file, and 34,261 North Texans were enrolled in it in September. UnitedHealthcare is staying in the Metroplex. Its PPO isn't. For 2027, the company's only PPO-style plan across all 27 of those counties is a regional plan that costs $138 a month.

Medicare On Main Data Desk

Published October 17, 2026 · 8 min read · Reviewed by Brian Penner

I matched UnitedHealthcare's Texas rows in the 2026 and 2027 CMS landscape files by plan number on October 17 and pulled member counts from CMS's September enrollment file. I'm licensed in Texas and work with Metroplex clients by phone and video. Naming a carrier or a hospital system here is reporting, not a recommendation or a complaint, and we do not offer every plan available in your area.

Where TX-0005's members live

This was a big plan by any measure, and most of it sat in four counties. The rest spread north to the Red River and west past Weatherford:

Source: CMS Monthly Enrollment by Contract/Plan/State/County, September 2026, plan H1278-013. The 14 smaller counties include Wise, Cooke, Van Zandt, Fannin, Palo Pinto, Coryell, Eastland, Bosque, Montague, Lampasas, Jack, Somervell, Hamilton and Mills.

A second, smaller UnitedHealthcare PPO ends with it: the AARP Medicare Advantage Patriot No Rx TX-MA06 (PPO), H1278-013's medical-only sibling, plan H1278-025. It carried 1,124 members in 16 counties, 372 of them in Tarrant. People in a no-drug plan usually get prescriptions somewhere else, often the VA, so their replacement question is different. We cover it in our post on medical-only plans, which is written for Utah but the logic holds.

Sources: CMS CY2027 and CY2026 landscape files; CMS September 2026 enrollment.

What UnitedHealthcare still sells in the Metroplex

The plan number is gone, but the company isn't. Its provider FAQ, dated September 8, says that "effective Jan. 1, 2027" UnitedHealthcare is "reducing some service areas and discontinuing some plans," and that "depending on the market, we may offer other plans" (UnitedHealthcare). In Dallas, Tarrant, Collin and Denton, the 2027 file shows exactly what that means:

Source: CMS CY2026 and CY2027 landscape files, identical rows in all four counties. A medical-only Patriot No Rx TX-MA02 (HMO-POS) also continues. 2027 overall Star Ratings: contract H0609 4 stars, R6801 3 stars (CMS, October 8, 2026). Everyone also pays the Part B premium; a $0 plan premium is not a $0 plan.

Two things in that table matter for a TX-0005 member. First, three of the HMO-POS plans have a $3,900 cap, far below the $6,700 you had, and two of them charge a premium. Second, the one plan that keeps "PPO" in its name costs $1,656 a year in premiums before you see a doctor, and its cap is the federal maximum for 2027.

HMO-POS or PPO: the question that decides your shortlist

If you picked TX-0005 on purpose, you probably picked it because a PPO pays something when you see a doctor outside its network (Medicare.gov on PPOs). An HMO generally pays nothing out of network except emergencies, urgent care and dialysis away from home. An HMO Point-of-Service plan sits between them: it may cover some services out of network, usually at a higher copay (Medicare.gov on HMOs). Which services, and at what cost, is spelled out in each plan's Evidence of Coverage, not in the CMS file.

So ask yourself one plain question before comparing any premiums. Is there a doctor or hospital I use, or expect to use, that might not be in an HMO network? If the honest answer is no, the HMO-POS plans from UnitedHealthcare and the HMOs from other carriers are on the table, and some have lower caps than you had. If the answer is yes, your list is the PPO table below, or Original Medicare with a supplement.

The Metroplex has several large hospital systems: Texas Health Resources, Baylor Scott & White, Methodist, Medical City, UT Southwestern, JPS and Cook Children's on the Fort Worth side, among others. Contracts between systems and plans change. Look up each doctor and each hospital by name in the plan's 2027 directory, then call the office and ask whether they will take that plan next year. Do this before you enroll.

The 2027 PPO shelf in Tarrant, Dallas, Collin and Denton

These are every general PPO with drug coverage filed for 2027 in at least one of the four counties, sorted by premium. Check the "where" column, because several are filed in only one or two counties.

Sources: CMS CY2027 landscape file, general (non-Special Needs) MA-PD plans with plan type PPO or Regional PPO in Dallas, Tarrant, Collin or Denton County; CMS 2027 Star Ratings, Summary Ratings, overall rating by contract. "Giveback" plans reduce the Part B premium by an amount not shown in the landscape file. USAA Honor plans are open to anyone with Medicare in the service area. Listing a plan is not a recommendation.

No plan here copies TX-0005's mix of $0 premium and a $6,700 cap in all four counties. The two Humana Value Choice plans and HumanaChoice H5216-352 come close on paper, though each one is filed in only part of the Metroplex. HealthSpring True Choice is in all four counties at $0 with a $6,800 cap. Baylor Scott & White's own PPO is $32 a month. A premium and a cap don't tell you about copays, drug tiers or the network, which is why the Summary of Benefits and the directory come next.

For every plan that left each county, not just UnitedHealthcare's, see the county pages for Dallas, Tarrant, Collin and Denton, or the Texas statewide list.

Your deadlines, in UnitedHealthcare's words and Medicare's

UnitedHealthcare told providers its non-renewal notices are "dated Oct. 2, 2026." From there:

• Now through December 7: the Annual Enrollment Period. Any plan you choose starts January 1 (Medicare.gov).
• December 8 through December 31: your Special Enrollment Period for a plan that is ending has started (42 CFR § 422.62(b)(1)). UnitedHealthcare's FAQ says members may enroll "between Oct. 15, 2026, and Dec. 31, 2026, for a Jan. 1, 2027, effective date." Most people will want to choose sooner, but the door doesn't close on December 7 for you.
• January 1: if you have not chosen, the FAQ says you "automatically return to Original Medicare." Because TX-0005 included drug coverage, you "will also lose Part D benefits" until you pick a plan.
• January 1 through February 28: the same Special Enrollment Period continues. A choice made in January starts February 1. One made in February starts March 1. Those are months with no drug plan and no yearly cap.

If you go more than 63 days in a row without a Part D plan or other creditable drug coverage, you can owe a late-enrollment penalty for as long as you have Part D. A January 1 start avoids that risk.

The Medigap route, without health questions

Some TX-0005 members will decide the network question is too important to leave to any plan's directory. Original Medicare has no network. Any doctor or hospital in the country that accepts Medicare can see you. Add a Medigap policy for the 20% and the deductibles, plus a stand-alone drug plan.

Normally, someone past their first six months on Part B can be asked health questions for Medigap and turned down. A plan ending changes that. Federal law gives you a guaranteed-issue right if you leave a Medicare Advantage plan that is ending and go to Original Medicare. The window opens 60 days before coverage ends and closes 63 days after. For a December 31 end date, that runs November 1, 2026 through March 4, 2027 (Medicare.gov). If you became eligible for Medicare in 2020 or later, the guaranteed plans are A, B, D, G, K and L. If you were eligible earlier, C and F are on the list too. Keep your non-renewal letter, because the Medigap insurer may ask for it as proof.

The trade-off is a monthly Medigap premium on top of the drug plan, against a PPO's $0 to $138. We'll price both for your ZIP code and age if you'd like.

Five things to check before you choose

1. Confirm the plan number on your card is H1278-013 (or H1278-025 for Patriot No Rx). If it's a different UnitedHealthcare plan, you got an Annual Notice of Change instead, and your plan continues.
2. Write down every doctor, specialist and hospital you saw this year, plus any you expect to need, such as a cardiologist or an orthopedic surgeon you have a referral to.
3. Decide HMO-POS or PPO using that list. This one decision cuts dozens of plans down to a handful.
4. Run your prescriptions through each finalist's 2027 formulary. Drug deductibles on the remaining UnitedHealthcare plans range from $165 to $685.
5. Enroll early enough for a January 1 start. That means December 7 to keep things simple, and no later than December 31.

How we know all this: the Medicare On Main Data Desk frames every article with public data. Here that means the CMS CY2026 and CY2027 landscape files, compared by Contract Plan ID on October 17, 2026; the CMS September 2026 county enrollment file; the CMS 2027 Star Ratings data tables published October 8, 2026; UnitedHealthcare's 2027 service-area-reductions FAQ for providers; 42 CFR § 422.62; and Medicare.gov's pages on PPOs, HMOs, enrollment periods and Medigap guaranteed issue. Networks, copays, formularies, giveback amounts and extra benefits are not in any CMS file and are not described. Your non-renewal letter and each plan's documents are the authority on those. Medicare On Main is a licensed independent insurance agency. We do not offer every plan available in your area. Any information we provide is limited to the plans we do offer in your area. Please contact Medicare.gov or 1-800-MEDICARE to get information on all of your options. Not connected with or endorsed by the U.S. government or the federal Medicare program. This is education, not advice.