Medicare Advantage

Fargo Medicare Plan Options for 2027

FARGO, N.D. — If you're turning 65 soon, helping a parent sort through the mail, or just trying to make sense of your Medicare options for 2027, here's a look at the range of plan choices in the Fargo area this fall.

Fargo-area Medicare shoppers have a full slate of choices to weigh for 2027

Because Medicare Advantage and Part D availability is set county by county, the picture around the metro depends on where you actually live. Fargo sits in Cass County, and nearby communities — West Fargo, Horace, Mapleton, and Casselton — share that same county footprint. Cross the Red River into Moorhead, and you're in Clay County, Minnesota, with a different set of plan options. This article sticks to the North Dakota side.

What was available in Cass County for 2026

According to CMS Medicare Advantage and Part D Landscape data, Cass County residents had 25 Medicare Advantage plans to choose from in 2026, offered by 5 carriers with MA-PD (Medicare Advantage with prescription drug coverage) options. The 2027 lineup is detailed in each plan's Annual Notice of Change and on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder.

For context, North Dakota has 11 stand-alone Part D plans for 2026, sold statewide, so anyone in Cass County on Original Medicare can join one of them. If you're on Original Medicare and want drug coverage, it's worth checking directly on Medicare.gov's Plan Finder, since the view you get once you enter your ZIP code and current medications is the most accurate for your situation.

For context, Cass County is home to about 25,154 people age 65 and older, so this is a meaningful slice of the community making these decisions each fall.

How the metro compares

Plan availability doesn't stop at the city limits. A few points worth knowing:

• West Fargo, Horace, Mapleton, Casselton, Kindred, and Harwood all fall within Cass County, so the same 25 Medicare Advantage plan count applies.
• Moorhead and Dilworth, just across the river, are in Clay County, Minnesota, which has its own separate plan lineup. If you're a snowbird or you moved across the river recently, this matters — your plan choices can change with your address.
• Rural counties surrounding Fargo (Richland, Ransom, Traill, Barnes) typically see fewer Medicare Advantage carriers than Cass. If a family member lives out in the country, don't assume their options mirror yours.

Star Ratings are one tool CMS publishes to help compare plans on quality. Under CMS's 2026 Star Ratings, 7 Medicare Advantage contracts offer plans in Cass County, 6 of them carry a 2026 Star Rating, and 3 of those are rated 4 stars or higher. Ratings can shift year to year, and they're only one piece of the puzzle — network, drug list, and your own doctors matter too.

Program-level facts to keep in mind for 2027

Whatever plan or path you land on, a few Medicare-wide rules apply everywhere in the country in 2027:

• Part D out-of-pocket cap: $2,100 in 2026 and $2,400 in 2027. Once your drug spending hits that limit, you pay nothing for covered Part D drugs the rest of the year.
• Part D deductible: up to $615 in 2026 and up to $700 in 2027. Plans can charge less, but not more.
• The coverage gap ("donut hole") is gone. As of 2025, Part D has just three phases.
• Medicare Prescription Payment Plan. You can choose to spread your drug costs into monthly payments instead of paying big amounts at the pharmacy counter.
• IRMAA (higher Part B and Part D premiums for higher earners) starts above $109,000 in income for a single filer in 2026.

Key dates for Fargo-area enrollees

• Oct. 15 – Dec. 7: Annual Enrollment Period. You can join, switch, or drop a Medicare Advantage or Part D plan for coverage starting Jan. 1.
• Jan. 1 – March 31: Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment. If you're already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can switch to another one or return to Original Medicare (and add a stand-alone Part D plan if one is available in your area).

Missing a deadline can mean waiting a year or paying a late penalty, so it's worth marking the calendar.