Medicare Advantage

Medicare and Medicaid in Connecticut: 12 Dual Special Needs Plans for 2027

HARTFORD — Connecticut residents who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid will have 12 Dual Special Needs Plans (D-SNPs) to consider for 2027, drawn from a statewide Medicare Advantage lineup of 48 plans, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Landscape files for the coming plan year. Four carriers offer those D-SNPs across the state, and availability varies by county.

What is a D-SNP in Connecticut and who qualifies in 2027?

A Dual Special Needs Plan is a type of Medicare Advantage plan designed only for people who have both Medicare and Medicaid, and in Connecticut 12 such plans will be offered for 2027. D-SNPs coordinate Medicare benefits with the Medicaid help a person already receives from the state.

To join, a person must have Medicare Parts A and B, live in the plan's service area, and have their Medicaid status confirmed by Connecticut's state Medicaid agency. That confirmation determines whether someone is a "full" dual eligible — qualifying for the full range of Medicaid benefits — or a "partial" dual eligible, such as someone in the Qualified Medicare Beneficiary (QMB) category whose Medicaid help is limited to Medicare cost sharing. Different D-SNPs are built for different dual-eligibility categories, which is why eligibility verification matters before enrolling.

How many D-SNPs are offered statewide in Connecticut for 2027, and which carriers offer them?

Twelve of the 48 Medicare Advantage plans in Connecticut for 2027 are D-SNPs; the state will also have 8 Chronic Condition SNPs (C-SNPs) and 1 Institutional SNP (I-SNP). The four carriers offering D-SNPs in Connecticut for 2027 are Aetna (CVS Health) with 4 plans, Centene (WellCare) with 2 plans, Elevance Health (Anthem) with 3 plans, and UnitedHealthcare with 3 plans.

The individual plan names — including Aetna Medicare Full Dual (HMO-POS D-SNP), Aetna Medicare Full Dual Extra (HMO-POS D-SNP), Aetna Medicare QMB Only (HMO-POS D-SNP), Aetna Medicare QMB Only Extra (HMO-POS D-SNP), Wellcare Dual Access (HMO-POS D-SNP), Wellcare Dual Liberty (HMO D-SNP), Anthem Dual Advantage Plus (HMO D-SNP), Anthem Full Dual Advantage (PPO D-SNP), Anthem Full Dual Advantage Select (HMO D-SNP), UHC Dual Complete CT-Q001 (PPO D-SNP), UHC Dual Complete CT-S001 (PPO D-SNP), and UHC Dual Complete CT-S2 (PPO D-SNP) — are listed in the full table on this page, along with their type and county footprint.

A few housekeeping notes from the 2027 CMS filings: two Aetna plans (Aetna Medicare Full Dual Extra and Aetna Medicare QMB Only Extra) are new for the coming year, and two plans have been renamed. Aetna Medicare QMB Only (HMO-POS D-SNP) was previously called Aetna Medicare Partial Dual (HMO-POS D-SNP), and Anthem Dual Advantage Plus (HMO D-SNP) was previously called Anthem Dual Advantage (HMO D-SNP). The name on the card may change even when the underlying contract continues.

How often can a dual-eligible person in Connecticut change plans in 2027?

People in Connecticut who have both Medicare and Medicaid generally have more chances to change plans than other Medicare beneficiaries. Through the Special Enrollment Period for dual-eligible and Extra Help individuals, a qualifying person can usually make one D-SNP or Medicare Advantage change per calendar quarter during the first three quarters of 2027 (January–March, April–June, and July–September), with the new coverage starting the first of the following month.

In the fourth quarter, changes happen through Annual Enrollment, which runs October 15 – December 7, 2026 for Annual Enrollment 2027; those choices take effect January 1, 2027. From January 1 through March 31, 2027, Medicare Open Enrollment 2027 also lets someone already in a Medicare Advantage plan switch to another MA plan or return to Original Medicare one time. The exact rules for each Special Enrollment Period are set by CMS; Medicare.gov and 1-800-MEDICARE can confirm which window applies to a given situation.

How do I check whether a D-SNP is offered in my Connecticut county for 2027?

Each of the 12 D-SNPs in Connecticut for 2027 is sold county by county, so a plan listed statewide may or may not appear on a specific county's Medicare Plan Finder results. The CMS Landscape file shows each of the 12 D-SNPs with an 8-county footprint in Connecticut, but counties covered are not identical from plan to plan, and the Plan Finder is the authoritative source for a given ZIP code.

To check a county: enter the ZIP code at medicare.gov, filter for Dual Special Needs Plans, and compare the plans that return. Readers can also call 1-800-MEDICARE, which is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Premiums, cost sharing, drug lists, provider networks and extra benefits for any specific plan should be verified in the plan's Evidence of Coverage and directories, not inferred from a plan name.

Where can someone in Connecticut get free, unbiased Medicare and D-SNP help in 2027?

Free help with Medicare questions in Connecticut is available year-round from Medicare directly. Medicare.gov hosts the official Plan Finder, enrollment tools, and plan documents, and 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY 1-877-486-2048) answers questions by phone around the clock.

For the Medicaid side — including confirming whether someone is a full or partial dual eligible and what Medicaid benefits apply — Connecticut's state Medicaid agency is the source of truth. A dual-eligible person usually needs both pieces of information (the Medicare side and the Medicaid category) before choosing a D-SNP.