Moab and Grand County · Medicare Advantage 2027
Is My Moab Medicare Advantage Plan Changing for 2027?
Most of the 2027 Medicare news this fall has been about plans shutting down along the Wasatch Front and across the Western Slope. Moab mostly got skipped. Nearly every plan sold in Grand County this year is coming back. But "coming back" is not the same as "staying the same," and the Annual Notice of Change in your mail is where the differences are printed. This is what changed, plan by plan.
What changed in Grand County
- Almost nothing is leaving. 18 plans for 2027, against 19 in 2026, and all 18 carry over from this year. The one exception is a Humana plan for people with Medicaid, which had 20 members here.
- Still two carriers. UnitedHealthcare and Humana are the only companies selling Advantage plans in Grand County, the same as 2026. No one new arrived.
- Drug deductibles go up on most plans, to $685 on UnitedHealthcare's and $700 on Humana's, the new federal limit. The UT-9 Giveback plan goes the other way, to $215.
- Caps move in both directions. The UT-9 Giveback cap falls $1,750. The UT-0008 PPO's rises $450. Humana's most popular Moab plan rises $255.
Read the full transcript
Eighteen of the nineteen Medicare Advantage plans sold in Moab are coming back for 2027. But coming back doesn't mean staying the same. Here's what changed in Grand County. First, drug deductibles go up on most plans, to $685 on UnitedHealthcare's plans and $700 on Humana's, the new federal limit. Second, out-of-pocket caps moved in both directions. The AARP Giveback UT-9 plan's cap drops by $1,750, and its drug deductible falls to $215. But Humana's most popular Moab plan, Essentials Plus Giveback, sees its cap rise to $5,750. Third, a renewing plan carries you into 2027 automatically, so the Annual Notice of Change on your counter is easy to ignore. Read it anyway. Open Enrollment runs October 15 to December 7. And Moab Regional Hospital doesn't publish its contracted plans, so call and ask about your plan by number. And as always, grab your free copy of Medicare Breakdown — The Alphabet Soup of Medicare. The link is right below this video. Or grab a free fifteen-minute call with Medicare on Main at 435-260-3200.
Why your plan "renewing" still deserves a look
When your plan renews, you do not have to do anything. You stay in it on January 1. That is why people in Moab tend to skip the Annual Notice of Change: the envelope does not say "your plan is ending," so it goes on the counter.
A renewing plan can still change its premium, its out-of-pocket cap, its copays, its drug list and its network. Those five things are what decide what a year on the plan costs you. CMS's landscape files, 2026 and 2027, show three of them for every plan in the county, and they are below. Copays, drugs and doctors you have to check in your own letter.
The eight Moab plans with drug coverage, 2026 to 2027
These are the Grand County plans anyone with Medicare can join that include Part D, ordered by how many people in the county had them in September, per CMS's county enrollment file:
| Plan | Moab-area members | Monthly premium | Out-of-pocket cap | Drug deductible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Humana Essentials Plus Giveback (PPO) H5216-430 | 82 | $0 → $0 | $5,495 → $5,750 | $615 → $700 |
| AARP Medicare Advantage UT-0008 (PPO) H2001-128 | 52 | $0 → $0 | $6,700 → $7,150 | $520 → $685 |
| AARP Medicare Advantage Essentials UT-4 (HMO-POS) H4604-011 | 52 | $0 → $0 | $5,200 → $4,900 | $440 → $685 |
| AARP Medicare Advantage Extras UT-7 (HMO-POS) H4604-018 | 45 | $0 → $0 | $6,700 → $6,700 | $520 → $685 |
| AARP Medicare Advantage Giveback UT-9 (PPO) H2001-131 | 43 | $0 → $0 | $8,900 → $7,150 | $600 → $215 |
| AARP Medicare Advantage UT-0003 (HMO-POS) H4604-003 | Under 11 | $55 → $49 | $4,900 → $4,900 | $440 → $685 |
| HumanaChoice (PPO) H5216-048 | Under 11 | $87 → $97 | $6,750 → $7,000 | $615 → $700 |
| HumanaChoice (PPO) H7617-016 | Under 11 | $87 → $110 | $6,750 → $7,000 | $615 → $700 |
Sources: CMS CY2026 and CY2027 landscape files, Grand County, Utah; CMS CPSC enrollment, September 2026 (CMS hides counts under 11). Caps are in-network. Four more plans with no drug coverage are covered below.
The plan that got better on paper: UT-9 Giveback
AARP Medicare Advantage Giveback from UHC UT-9 (PPO) had the highest cap of any $0 drug plan in Grand County for 2026, $8,900. For 2027 it drops to $7,150, and its drug deductible falls from $600 to $215. The 43 people in it get both changes without lifting a finger. The thing to check is the giveback itself: a Part B giveback plan pays part of your Part B premium back each month, and the amount is set plan by plan each year. The CMS file does not show it. Your Annual Notice of Change does.
The two plans where the cap went up
The UT-0008 PPO, one of the two biggest UnitedHealthcare plans locally, goes from a $6,700 cap to $7,150. Humana Essentials Plus Giveback, the most popular Advantage plan in the county with 82 members, goes from $5,495 to $5,750. Neither change matters in a quiet year. Both matter in a year with a surgery or a hospital stay in Grand Junction or Salt Lake City.
Premiums: only three plans charge one
Both HumanaChoice PPOs were $87 a month in 2026. For 2027 one is $97 and the other is $110. UnitedHealthcare's UT-0003 HMO-POS goes the other way, from $55 to $49, and keeps its $4,900 cap, tied with the Essentials UT-4 plan for the lowest of any drug plan in the table.
Want your Moab plan's letter read against the others?
Bring your Annual Notice of Change to our Moab office on Main Street, or read it to us by phone. We will line up your plan's 2027 numbers against the other Grand County plans we offer and check your prescriptions and doctors. Free, no pressure.
Book a free review →The drug deductible is the change most people will feel
Medicare.gov's drug-cost page says no plan may have a deductible "more than $700 in 2027 ($615 in 2026)." The yearly cap on what you pay for covered drugs rises at the same time, from $2,100 to $2,400.
In the table above, every Humana plan is at the new $700 limit, and every UnitedHealthcare plan except UT-9 is at $685. On the UnitedHealthcare HMO-POS plans that is a $245 jump from $440. The deductible is what you pay first, at full price, before the plan starts sharing the cost of a drug. Many plans waive it on low-cost generic tiers, so whether you feel it depends on which tiers your drugs are on. If you take a brand-name drug, look up its tier and price in your plan's 2027 drug list, not the 2026 one.
Star ratings for Moab's two carriers
CMS published 2027 Star Ratings on October 8. Every plan in Grand County is under one of four contracts. UnitedHealthcare's H2001 contract (the PPOs) holds at 4.5 stars, and its H4604 contract (the HMO-POS plans) at 4. Humana's H7617 contract stays at 4.5, and its H5216 contract rises from 3.5 to 4. So no carrier in the county dropped a star this year.
Plans without drug coverage, and the one that leaves
Grand County also has four Advantage plans with no Part D, mostly used by veterans who get their drugs through the VA. The three Humana USAA Honor Giveback PPOs keep their caps unchanged ($9,150, $9,150 and $5,100), and UnitedHealthcare's Patriot No Rx UT-MA01 HMO-POS goes from $6,700 to $7,150.
The one plan that does not return to Grand County is HumanaChoice SNP-DE H5216-296, a Special Needs Plan for people with both Medicare and Medicaid. CMS's crosswalk shows it renewing with a smaller service area, which means it continues elsewhere but not here. Its 20 local members should have received a non-renewal letter. Five other Medicaid plans remain in the county for 2027, two of them from Humana at $0 a month, and members whose plan ends get a Special Enrollment Period.
The network check Moab needs every year
Moab Regional Hospital handles a lot, but specialists, cancer care and most surgeries mean a drive to Grand Junction, across the state line, or to Salt Lake City. A renewing plan can change its network without changing its name, so check all three places by name in your plan's 2027 directory.
Moab Regional's billing page does not list the insurers it contracts with, and I would not guess. Call its Business Office at 435-719-3536 with your plan number and ask about 2027. For Grand Junction specialists, a PPO pays for out-of-network care at a higher cost, while an HMO-POS pays only for some services out of network. The rules for your plan are in its Evidence of Coverage.
About three in four Medicare beneficiaries in the county, 1,762 of 2,299 in June 2026 per CMS's enrollment data, are on Original Medicare instead of an Advantage plan. Original Medicare has no network, which is a big part of why it is so common here. If your plan's 2027 changes push you to rethink, that route is open too. Switching from an Advantage plan to Medigap in Utah usually means answering health questions, which is covered in our post on switching back to Original Medicare.
What I would do with a Moab Annual Notice of Change
- Find the first page summary. Premium, cap and deductible are usually listed at the top. Compare them with the table above.
- Look up each of your prescriptions in the 2027 drug list, for tier and any new prior authorization.
- Call about Moab Regional and your specialists with your plan number in hand.
- If you are on UT-9, find the 2027 giveback amount.
- Decide by December 7. If nothing changed that matters to you, doing nothing is a fine answer.
I have spent more than 22 years helping people read these letters. In a year when nothing in Moab is ending, the risk is not losing a plan. It is paying more on the same one without noticing.
How we know all this: the Medicare On Main Data Desk frames every article with public data. Here that means CMS's CY2026 and CY2027 Medicare Advantage landscape files (September 2026 releases) and 2027 plan crosswalk, compared by plan number for Grand County, Utah; CMS's September 2026 county enrollment file and June 2026 monthly enrollment data; CMS's 2027 Star Ratings; Medicare.gov's drug-cost page; and Moab Regional Hospital's billing page, all read October 20, 2026. Carrier and hospital names are factual reporting, not endorsement. Medicare On Main is not affiliated with Moab Regional Hospital. This is education, not advice. Confirm your own plan with your Annual Notice of Change or Medicare.gov, and compare plans with a licensed agent. We take no payment from any carrier to feature a plan.
Frequently asked questions
Are any Medicare Advantage plans leaving Moab for 2027?
One. HumanaChoice SNP-DE H5216-296, a Special Needs Plan for people with Medicaid that had 20 Grand County members in September 2026, is not offered in the county for 2027. It continues in other counties. Every other plan sold in Grand County in 2026 is back for 2027, from the same two carriers, UnitedHealthcare and Humana, and no new plans were added.
What is the Part D deductible for 2027?
No Medicare drug plan may charge a deductible above $700 in 2027, up from $615 in 2026, according to Medicare.gov. In Grand County, the Humana plans open to everyone sit at that $700 limit and most UnitedHealthcare plans at $685. The exception is AARP Medicare Advantage Giveback UT-9, whose drug deductible drops to $215. Many plans skip the deductible for low-cost generic tiers, so check which tiers your drugs are on.
Do I have to do anything if my Medicare Advantage plan is renewing?
No. A renewing plan carries you into 2027 automatically on January 1. But "renewing" is not the same as "unchanged." Your plan mailed an Annual Notice of Change by September 30 listing what is different, and that letter is your cue to compare during Open Enrollment, October 15 to December 7. A change made then starts January 1.
Does Moab Regional Hospital accept Medicare Advantage?
Moab Regional Hospital does not publish a list of the insurance plans it contracts with. Its Billing and Pricing page sends questions to its Business Office at 435-719-3536. Call with your plan's name and number, for example H2001-128, and ask whether the hospital and its clinic are in network for 2027, not just 2026.
Are Medicare Advantage premiums going up in Grand County for 2027?
Only on the three plans that charge one. The two HumanaChoice PPOs rise from $87 to $97 and from $87 to $110 a month. AARP Medicare Advantage UT-0003, the HMO-POS, drops from $55 to $49. Every $0 plan in the county stays at $0, though its cap, copays or drug deductible may have changed.
Sources
- CMS — CY 2027 Medicare Advantage landscape file (September 2026 release, ZIP): Grand County 2027 premiums, caps and drug deductibles.
- CMS — CY 2026 Medicare Advantage landscape file (September 2026 release, ZIP): Grand County 2026 plans and star ratings.
- CMS — Plan Crosswalk 2027 (ZIP): H5216-296 "Renewal Plan with SAR."
- CMS — Monthly Enrollment by Contract/Plan/State/County, September 2026 (ZIP): members by plan in Grand County.
- CMS — Medicare Monthly Enrollment, Grand County, Utah, June 2026 (data.cms.gov): 2,299 beneficiaries; 1,762 Original Medicare; 537 Advantage and other.
- CMS — 2027 Medicare Part C and D Star Ratings data: 2027 overall ratings for H2001, H4604, H5216 and H7617.
- Medicare.gov — Costs for Medicare drug coverage: the $700 deductible limit and $2,400 cap for 2027.
- Moab Regional Hospital — Billing and Pricing: Business Office contact.
