Medicare Advantage

Medicare and Medicaid in South Carolina: 11 Dual Special Needs Plans for 2027

COLUMBIA, S.C. — South Carolinians who have both Medicare and Medicaid will see 11 Dual Special Needs Plans (D-SNPs) available somewhere in the state for 2027, out of 97 Medicare Advantage plans listed statewide in the CMS Landscape files. These plans are built specifically for people who qualify for both programs, and they are offered county by county, so the plans on the statewide list are not all offered everywhere.

The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and any choice made during that window takes effect January 1, 2027. Dual-eligible residents also have more flexibility to change plans during the year than most Medicare beneficiaries, which is explained further below.

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

A Dual Special Needs Plan is a type of Medicare Advantage plan limited to people who have both Medicare and some level of South Carolina Medicaid. All 11 D-SNPs listed in South Carolina for 2027 include drug coverage, and each one is either an HMO D-SNP or a PPO D-SNP.

Two eligibility categories matter. "Full dual" eligibility means a person qualifies for full South Carolina Medicaid benefits in addition to Medicare. "Partial dual" eligibility means Medicaid helps pay certain Medicare costs through a Medicare Savings Program but does not provide full Medicaid benefits. Different D-SNPs are designed for different subsets of the dual-eligible population, so enrollment depends on the exact category a person falls into.

Eligibility is confirmed by the state Medicaid agency — the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services — not by the Medicare plan or by Medicare itself. If a person's Medicaid status changes during the year, their D-SNP enrollment can be affected.

How many D-SNPs are offered in South Carolina for 2027 and which carriers offer them?

South Carolina has 11 D-SNPs for 2027, part of 97 total Medicare Advantage plans in the statewide Landscape. For context, the state's other Special Needs Plan counts for 2027 are 12 Chronic Condition SNPs (C-SNPs) and 6 Institutional SNPs (I-SNPs).

Six carriers offer the 11 D-SNPs in South Carolina for 2027: Aetna (CVS Health) with 2 plans, Centene (WellCare) with 1, First Choice VIP Care (HMO D-SNP) with 1, Humana with 2, Molina Healthcare of South Carolina with 2, and UnitedHealthcare with 3. The full plan names, plan types and county counts are shown in the D-SNP table on this page; one example of a renaming for 2027 is the UnitedHealthcare plan now called UHC Dual Advantage SC-V1 (PPO D-SNP), which was previously listed as UHC Dual Complete SC-V001 (PPO D-SNP).

Because each plan is offered in a specific set of counties — ranging from 9 counties for one of the Molina plans to 46 counties for several others — the plans available to any one reader are a subset of the statewide 11.

How often can a dual-eligible person in South Carolina change Medicare plans in 2027?

Most dual-eligible South Carolinians can change their Medicare Advantage plan or Part D plan once per quarter during the first three quarters of the calendar year, using the Special Enrollment Period for dual-eligible and Extra Help enrollees. A change made in a given quarter takes effect the first day of the following month.

That is in addition to the Annual Enrollment Period from October 15 to December 7, 2026 for coverage starting January 1, 2027, and the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period from January 1 to March 31, 2027, during which a person already in a Medicare Advantage plan can make one change.

In practical terms, a dual-eligible resident is not locked in for the full year the way someone with only Medicare generally is. If a plan is no longer a good fit — for example, because a doctor leaves the network or Medicaid status changes — there is usually a path to switch.

How do I check which D-SNPs are offered in my South Carolina county for 2027?

The authoritative county-level view comes from the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov, where entering a ZIP code returns the Medicare Advantage, Part D and D-SNP plans available in that specific county for 2027. The same information can be requested by calling 1-800-MEDICARE, which is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The 11 D-SNPs listed statewide for 2027 are not all offered in every South Carolina county. Several of the plans on the list — including the Centene (WellCare), First Choice VIP Care, Humana HMO D-SNP, and three UnitedHealthcare PPO D-SNPs — are listed in 46 counties, while others appear in a smaller footprint such as the Aetna Medicare Full Dual Care plan at 24 counties or the smaller Molina Medicare Complete Care Plus listing at 9 counties. The only way to confirm what is actually available at a given address is a county-specific lookup.

Plan details — premiums, deductibles, copays, provider networks, drug formularies and star ratings — are not part of this article. Those come from the Medicare Plan Finder, 1-800-MEDICARE, or each plan's own Evidence of Coverage and provider and pharmacy directories.

Where can South Carolinians get free help comparing Medicare and Medicaid options for 2027?

Two free, non-commercial sources are available to every South Carolinian year-round. Medicare.gov hosts the Plan Finder, plan documents and the official enrollment pages. 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227; TTY 1-877-486-2048) can answer questions about eligibility, enrollment periods and county-level plan availability, and can help start or change an enrollment.

For questions specific to South Carolina Medicaid eligibility — full dual, partial dual, or a Medicare Savings Program — the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services is the agency of record.