Medicare Advantage

Nashville's 2027 D-SNPs: who qualifies, how to confirm, and when you can switch

Davidson County has 69 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 14 plans are not coming back, 9 are new, and 30 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 9 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Nashville, not which plan to pick.

NASHVILLE — If you have both Medicare and TennCare (Tennessee's Medicaid program), you have a type of Medicare Advantage plan built specifically for you: a Dual Special Needs Plan, or D-SNP. For 2027, Davidson County residents will have 12 D-SNPs to choose from, offered by five carriers. The fall Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, and any change you make then starts January 1, 2027 — but if you qualify as a dual-eligible, you also get extra chances to switch during the year.

Here's what to know as you review your options.

What a D-SNP is, and why it exists

A Dual Special Needs Plan is a Medicare Advantage plan limited to people who have both Medicare and Medicaid. The idea is to coordinate the two programs so you have one plan handling your medical care, your Part D prescription drugs, and the extra help Medicaid provides — instead of juggling separate cards and separate rules.

Every D-SNP includes Part D drug coverage. Many are designed to work closely with TennCare so that cost-sharing, care coordination, and extra benefits line up with what Medicaid already covers for you.

Who qualifies: full vs. partial dual eligibility

To join any D-SNP, you must:

1. Be entitled to Medicare Part A and enrolled in Part B, and 2. Qualify for some form of Medicaid help in Tennessee.

Medicaid help comes in different levels, often called the Medicare Savings Programs. In plain terms:

• Full dual-eligible means you get full TennCare benefits in addition to Medicare. TennCare helps pay your Medicare premiums and cost-sharing, and also covers services Medicare does not (like long-term services and supports).
• Partial dual-eligible means TennCare helps with some Medicare costs — for example, your Part B premium, or your deductibles and coinsurance — but you do not get full Medicaid benefits. Common categories include QMB (Qualified Medicare Beneficiary), SLMB, and QI.

Different D-SNPs are built for different levels. Some accept only people in the QMB category; others are for people with full Medicaid; others accept a broader mix. Your state Medicaid agency (TennCare) is the office that confirms which level you qualify for. If you are not sure, call TennCare Connect at 1-855-259-0701 or check your most recent TennCare notice.

The 12 D-SNPs offered in Davidson County for 2027

Nashville is in Davidson County, where CMS lists 12 Dual Special Needs Plans for the 2027 plan year from five carriers. The table below lists every plan on this page; here is the carrier-by-carrier breakdown:

• BlueCare Plus Tennessee (3 plans): BlueCare Plus (HMO D-SNP); BlueCare Plus Choice (HMO D-SNP); BlueCare Plus Select (HMO D-SNP).
• Elevance Health (Anthem) (3 plans): Wellpoint Dual Advantage Plus (HMO D-SNP) — renamed from Wellpoint Full Dual Advantage; Wellpoint Full Dual Advantage 2 (HMO D-SNP); Wellpoint Full Dual Advantage Support (HMO D-SNP).
• HealthSpring (1 plan): HealthSpring TotalCare Plus (HMO D-SNP).
• Humana (2 plans): Humana Dual QMB Only (HMO D-SNP) — renamed from Humana Gold Plus SNP-DE H4461-038; Humana Gold Plus SNP-DE H4461-022 (HMO D-SNP).
• UnitedHealthcare (3 plans): UHC Dual Complete TN-Q1 (HMO-POS D-SNP) — new for 2027; UHC Dual Complete TN-Y2 (HMO-POS D-SNP) — new for 2027; UHC Dual Complete TN-YL (HMO-POS D-SNP) — renamed from UHC Dual Complete TN-Y001.

Three of these plans are new or newly named for 2027. If you are already in a plan whose name is changing, your carrier will mail you an Annual Notice of Change (ANOC) this fall explaining what, if anything, is different. Read it before December 7.

For broader context, Davidson County will have 69 Medicare Advantage plans overall in 2027, including 12 D-SNPs, 13 Chronic Condition SNPs (C-SNPs), and 7 Institutional SNPs (I-SNPs).

How often a dual-eligible can change plans

This is one of the biggest advantages of being dual-eligible: you are not locked into the once-a-year window other Medicare beneficiaries use.

• Annual Enrollment Period: October 15 – December 7, 2026. Changes take effect January 1, 2027. Anyone with Medicare can use this window.
• Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment: January 1 – March 31. If you are already in a Medicare Advantage plan, you can switch to another one or go back to Original Medicare once during this window.
• Dual-eligible / Extra Help special enrollment period: If you have Medicaid or qualify for the Part D Low-Income Subsidy ("Extra Help"), you generally get a monthly opportunity to join an integrated D-SNP that works with your Medicaid plan, or to leave a Medicare Advantage plan and return to Original Medicare with a stand-alone drug plan. The exact rules have been tightening in recent years, so confirm what applies to you today by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY 1-877-486-2048).

If you do nothing, your current plan simply renews for 2027 if it is still offered — with whatever changes are listed in your ANOC.

How to confirm your eligibility before you enroll

Before switching D-SNPs, take two steps:

1. Confirm your TennCare status. Call TennCare Connect at 1-855-259-0701 or sign in at tenncare.gov. Ask which category you fall into (full Medicaid, QMB, SLMB, QI, etc.). D-SNPs can disenroll members who lose Medicaid eligibility, so keeping your TennCare renewal current matters. 2. Confirm your Medicare status. Have your red, white, and blue Medicare card handy, and use the Plan Finder at medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE. A representative can look up which D-SNPs you are eligible for in Davidson County and walk you through enrollment.

For plan details — premiums, drug lists, provider networks, extra benefits, star ratings — go directly to medicare.gov, call 1-800-MEDICARE, or request the plan's Evidence of Coverage from the carrier. Those are the official sources.

A quick note on 2027 Part D figures

Even inside a D-SNP, your drug coverage follows Part D rules. CMS has confirmed that for 2027 the Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 (up from $2,100 in 2026), and the maximum Part D deductible rises to $700 (up from $615 in 2026). The 2027 Part B premium and the IRMAA income brackets have not yet been announced; CMS typically publishes those later in the fall. Most full dual-eligibles pay little or nothing toward Part D because Extra Help is automatic.