Best Medicare Advantage Plans in Delaware (2027)

Aetna Medicare is the best Medicare Advantage insurer in Delaware because it charges less for hospital stays, with the lowest median hospital copay among rated insurers, $325 a day. Aetna’s median copays, the flat fees you pay per visit or hospital day, are also lower than UnitedHealthcare’s for specialist visits. UnitedHealthcare has the lower worst-case cost and higher star rating in the table below.

Median max annual cost exposure adds a year of premiums to the out-of-pocket limit (MOOP), the most a plan makes you pay for in-network care in a year. CMS star ratings are Medicare’s 1-to-5 quality scores. UnitedHealthcare pairs 4 stars with $7,150 in cost exposure. Humana has the same 4 stars with $1,800 more in cost exposure.

Pick UnitedHealthcare for the lowest median cost exposure and Aetna for frequent hospital or specialist care.

Most of Delaware’s Medicare Advantage market is open to you, since the median county has 17 of the state’s 24 plans. Medicare Advantage is private insurance that replaces Original Medicare, the government’s Part A hospital and Part B medical coverage, and usually bundles in drug coverage.

Medicare Supplement plans, also called Medigap, don’t replace Original Medicare. They pay your share of its bills, such as deductibles and coinsurance.

Seven carriers sell plans in Delaware, and we rated four. Devoted Health and HealthSpring sell only in New Castle County, and Wellcare’s single plan scored below our review cutoff. Delaware’s average CMS rating is 3.60 stars.

The best Delaware Medicare Advantage plan depends on your health care needs, budget, provider preferences and how much flexibility you want with out-of-network care.

Medicare Advantage in Delaware costs $0 a month at the median for every plan type, and median out-of-pocket limits differ by $50 at most. HMO and HMO-POS plans share a $7,150 median limit. PPO limits alone range from $5,900 to $9,850, so compare individual plans before plan types.

HMO-POS plans have the highest median hospital copay of the three plan types, $450 a day, or $138 more than an HMO. A four-day stay costs about $550 extra. PPOs charge $372 a day and also pay for out-of-network care, so a PPO beats an HMO-POS on both counts if you expect a hospital stay.

*Median cost figures across all 24 non-SNP Delaware MA plans, grouped by plan type. All dollar figures rounded to nearest dollar. Source: CMS 2027 data, MoneyGeek analysis.

Delaware residents can get free counseling, compare plans and access financial assistance for Medicare costs through these state and federal resources.

• Delaware Medicare Assistance Bureau (DMAB): Delaware's free, unbiased counseling program connects Medicare beneficiaries with trained counselors who help compare Medicare Advantage plans, review enrollment periods and answer coverage questions at no cost.
• Medicare.gov Plan Finder: The federal tool for comparing Medicare Advantage plans by ZIP code, including premiums, deductibles, star ratings, prescription drug coverage and supplemental benefits.
• Delaware Department of Insurance: The state agency that licenses and regulates carriers operating in Delaware. Use it to verify a plan's standing or file a complaint about coverage.
• Delaware Medicare Savings Programs: Pay Medicare Part B premiums for residents with income up to 135% of the federal poverty level, plus Part A and B deductibles for the lowest-income tier. The 2026 limit, which applies to 2027 coverage, is $21,546 a year for one person.
• Social Security Administration: Processes Medicare enrollment for most Delaware residents. You can apply for Medicare, check enrollment status or set up premium payments through SSA.gov.

MoneyGeek used five CMS data sources: the Medicare Plan Landscape File, Plan Benefit Package files, CMS Star Ratings, the CAHPS Report Card Master Table and the Contract/Plan Enrollment file.

Special Needs Plans are excluded from all ratings. Delaware has only three counties, so carriers must serve all three to qualify for scoring. Five of the seven carriers meet that requirement.   

Devoted Health and HealthSpring each serve one of Delaware’s three counties, below the minimum threshold, so neither appears in the provider reviews.

Wellcare covers all three Delaware counties and cleared the threshold for scoring, but its score fell below the level for a provider review.

How We Score Carriers

Five carriers get an overall rating out of five. Carrier-level scores are medians across each carrier’s Delaware non-SNP MA plans, with CMS Star Ratings and CAHPS as plan-weighted medians. Three categories determine each score:   

• Affordability (40%): Affordability weighs four costs. Maximum annual cost exposure, a year of premiums plus the out-of-pocket limit, counts for 20%. Inpatient hospital costs count for 10%, specialist costs for 6% and primary care costs for 4%.
• Quality and Member Experience (40%): CMS Star Ratings make up 60% of the quality score. The CAHPS Rating of Health Plan, a 0-to-100 score from Medicare’s annual member satisfaction survey, makes up 40%. Both are measured at the contract level.
• Benefits and Access (20%): Supplemental dental, OTC, vision and hearing benefits take 50% of this category. County coverage is weighted at 30% and plan choice per county at 20%.