Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas Ends Medicare Advantage Plans in 2027, Act by December 7

If your Medicare card says Blue Cross and you live in Texas, the envelope that arrived this month is not a routine change notice. It is a plan ending, and it starts three separate clocks.

What did Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas announce for 2027?

The company posted a notice on its own Medicare pages stating that effective January 1, 2027, BCBSTX will no longer offer Blue Cross MedicareRx (PDP) Prescription Drug Plans, Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Plans or Blue Cross Medicare Advantage Dual Care Plus (HMO SNP) Plans for the 2027 plan year. That covers individual Advantage, dual-eligible and stand-alone drug coverage.

BCBSTX told KERA that impacted customers were notified by mail before October 2 with a letter that provides their options, and that those customers will have a special election period to choose another plan. The company said it evaluates its Medicare products annually by market to determine ongoing viability, remains committed to the market nationally, and in some cases needs to make adjustments.

This is not only a Texas story. Carriers nationwide trimmed or ended Advantage plans for 2027, which we covered in our explainer on what to do when a Medicare Advantage plan leaves your area.

Which Texas counties and plans are affected?

Every Texas county where these Blue Cross plans were sold loses them. The Dallas Morning News reports that BCBSTX sold plans in 227 Texas counties, while HCSC’s HealthSpring plans are offered in only 47 Texas counties, and HCSC holds 11.2 percent of Texas Medicare Advantage enrollment, mostly through HealthSpring.

There is no public, member-level county list, so treat your letter and the plan name on your card as the authoritative record. Keep the letter. You will need it as proof of termination if you apply for a Medicare supplement later.

Replacement options still exist in most Texas counties, but they are not identical. If a specific hospital system matters to you, verify participation plan by plan, the same way we walk through it in our guide to checking whether MD Anderson accepts a given Medicare Advantage plan, and start from our Texas Medicare guide for the state picture.

Is your deadline December 7 or February 28?

Both, depending on which door you use. Annual Enrollment runs October 15 to December 7, 2026 for coverage starting January 1. Medicare.gov describes a separate chance to change plans between December 8 and the last day in February of the following year when a plan’s contract is not renewed. February 2027 ends on the 28th.

The practical rule: if you want January 1 coverage with no gap, decide by December 7. The February date is a safety net, not a plan. Our breakdown of what AEP for 2027 coverage does and does not cover explains the difference, and the Medicare hub has the full calendar.

How does the guaranteed-issue Medigap window work for Texas members?

A plan termination is one of the federal triggers for guaranteed issue. When a Medicare Advantage plan ends, you may apply as early as 60 calendar days before coverage ends and no later than 63 calendar days after it ends, and Medigap coverage cannot start until the Advantage coverage ends. With coverage ending December 31, 2026, that is March 4, 2027.

You may also choose to have the 63-day window start the day you are officially notified the plan is ending rather than the day coverage ends. Ask that the new policy take effect the day your old coverage stops so there is no uncovered month.

Guaranteed issue does not mean every letter is available, and Medigap rules and underwriting differ by state. The Texas Department of Insurance describes guaranteed issue as the right to buy a Medicare supplement policy outside the six-month open enrollment period when you lose certain types of health coverage. Check your own state rules with our state-by-state Medigap tracker, and read how the Texas six-month window and 63-day rights fit together before you apply.

One note for Texans under 65 on Medicare because of ESRD or ALS: a TDI rule proposal would add a guaranteed issue period from October 15, 2026 through March 31, 2027 for those eligible under HB 2516, to support people switching from a Medicare Advantage plan to traditional Medicare who want Medicare supplement coverage.

What should Dual Care Plus (HMO SNP) members do differently?

Dual-eligible members have Medicaid as well as Medicare, and a Medigap policy is usually the wrong tool for that situation. The affected plans include dual plans available to people eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid. The replacement is normally another D-SNP or a standard plan plus Part D.

People with Medicaid or Extra Help also have additional election opportunities during the year, so a missed December date is less likely to be final. Confirm your Medicaid status is current before you enroll, because D-SNP eligibility depends on it. The Texas Health Information, Counseling and Advocacy Program offers free one-on-one counseling for dual-eligible members.

How do you compare a replacement Part D or Medicare Advantage plan?

Start with drugs, not premiums. For 2027, the standard Part D deductible is $700, up from $615 in 2026, and the annual out-of-pocket threshold is $2,400, up from $2,100. A plan with a lower premium and a worse formulary can cost more over twelve months.

Enter every medication, dose and pharmacy, then confirm your prescribers and hospitals are in network for 2027. Our piece on the four factors that decide a 2027 Part D plan walks through the order, and the Part D hub covers deductibles, tiers and the payment plan option.

If you are weighing Original Medicare plus a supplement against another Advantage plan, use our Medigap switching checker first, because the guaranteed-issue door is the part of this decision that closes permanently.

What happens if you do nothing by December 31?

You are not left without hospital and doctor coverage. If you do not join another Medicare Advantage plan before your current plan ends, you are enrolled in Original Medicare. Original Medicare pays Part A and Part B claims, but it includes no prescription drug benefit and no out-of-pocket limit.

Two costs follow from inaction. Drugs become cash purchases until you join a Part D plan, and uncovered months can create a Part D late enrollment penalty of 1 percent of the national base beneficiary premium for each month without creditable coverage. Our explainer on creditable coverage and the Part D penalty shows how the count works.

Nothing here tells you to drop coverage you still want. It tells you that one carrier’s decision started a calendar, and that the Medigap half of it ends in early March 2027 whether or not you have used it.