Medicare Advantage

Fort Worth's 2027 C-SNP lineup: 14 chronic-condition plans and how to qualify

Tarrant County has 83 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027. Compared with 2026, 28 plans are not coming back, 22 are new, and 32 continuing plans changed in some way you should check before December 7, 10 of them under a new name. This guide covers what those numbers mean for Fort Worth, not which plan to pick.

Fort Worth, Texas — Fall 2026. If you live with a long-term health condition like diabetes, chronic heart failure or end-stage renal disease, there is a kind of Medicare Advantage plan built specifically for you: a Chronic Condition Special Needs Plan, or C-SNP. For plan year 2027, Tarrant County — the county Fort Worth sits in — will have 14 C-SNPs from six carriers, according to the CMS Medicare Advantage Landscape Source File. That is a small slice of the 83 Medicare Advantage plans in the county, but it is the slice designed around a specific diagnosis.

Here is what C-SNPs are, who can join, and how the enrollment window works for people who qualify.

What a C-SNP actually is

A Chronic Condition Special Needs Plan is a type of Medicare Advantage plan. Like other Medicare Advantage plans, it bundles your Part A (hospital) and Part B (medical) coverage and almost always includes Part D (prescription drugs). All 14 Tarrant County C-SNPs for 2027 include drug coverage.

The difference is who can join. A C-SNP is only open to people with a specific chronic condition that Medicare has approved for this plan type — for example, diabetes, chronic heart failure, or end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The plan's provider network, drug list and extra benefits are shaped around managing that condition. Many C-SNPs include care coordination, where a nurse or case manager helps keep your appointments, medications and specialists working together.

A C-SNP is not a Medigap plan and is not the same as a Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan (D-SNP), which is for people who have both Medicare and Medicaid. Tarrant County also has 22 D-SNPs and 7 Institutional Special Needs Plans (I-SNPs) for 2027, which are separate categories.

Who can enroll

Two things have to be true to join a C-SNP:

1. You have Medicare Part A and Part B. 2. A health care provider confirms, in writing, that you have the chronic condition the plan covers.

That provider verification is a hard rule set by CMS. When you apply, the plan will reach out to the doctor you name to confirm the diagnosis. If the provider does not confirm it within a set window, the plan cannot keep you enrolled. If you do have the condition, enrollment goes through normally.

Because a C-SNP targets one condition category, you should only apply to a plan whose condition matches your diagnosis. Only trust what a plan's name says about the condition it serves — do not assume from a brand name alone.

The Fort Worth C-SNP lineup for 2027

Six carriers will offer C-SNPs in Tarrant County in 2027: Aetna (CVS Health) with 1 plan, Elevance Health (Anthem) with 3, Humana with 5, ProCare Advantage with 2, UnitedHealthcare with 2, and Verda Health Plan of Texas with 1. Several are new or renamed for 2027, including a new Wellpoint Chronic Care Select plan from Elevance Health, new Humana DaVita Kidney Care plans, a new Humana Gold Plus - Diabetes and Heart plan, and a new Verda Noble Chronic Care plan. The Aetna Medicare Chronic Care Total plan is a renamed version of a 2026 plan.

The table below lists every C-SNP available in the county, grouped by carrier. Costs, provider networks, drug lists and star ratings vary by plan and change year to year — those details live on the Medicare Plan Finder and in each plan's Evidence of Coverage.

The Special Enrollment Period for chronic conditions

Most people can only change Medicare Advantage plans during two windows: the Annual Enrollment Period (Oct. 15 – Dec. 7, 2026, for 2027 coverage) and the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (Jan. 1 – March 31). If you do nothing during AEP, your current plan simply renews with whatever changes are in its Annual Notice of Change (ANOC).

People who qualify for a C-SNP get an additional path in. Having a qualifying chronic condition triggers a Special Enrollment Period that lets you enroll in a C-SNP outside the normal windows. You can generally use it once per calendar quarter during the first nine months of the year to join a C-SNP that fits your condition. After enrolling, you stay in that plan under the usual rules — the SEP is for getting in, not for repeat switching.

If your condition changes, or you no longer qualify, the plan is required to work with you on a transition to another Medicare option so you do not lose coverage.

How C-SNPs fit with Part D changes in 2027

Because every C-SNP in Tarrant County includes drug coverage, the Part D updates for 2027 apply:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 in 2027 (up from $2,100 in 2026). Once your spending on covered drugs hits that cap, you pay $0 for covered drugs for the rest of the year.
• The maximum Part D deductible is $700 in 2027 (up from $615 in 2026). Many plans set a lower deductible.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan is still available if you want to spread drug costs across the year in monthly payments instead of paying at the pharmacy counter.

CMS has not yet announced the 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible or the 2027 IRMAA income brackets; those typically come out in the fall. Check medicare.gov once they are posted.

What to do during this fall's enrollment window

If you already have a C-SNP, read the ANOC your plan mailed you. It explains what is changing for 2027 — benefits, drug list, network, costs. If your plan is one of the 28 Tarrant County Medicare Advantage plans not returning in 2027, the plan will tell you in writing, and you will have a Special Enrollment Period to pick a replacement.

If you think you qualify for a C-SNP for the first time, talk to your doctor about your diagnosis and ask whether a condition-specific plan would make sense for the care you already get. Then compare the available C-SNPs on the Medicare Plan Finder at medicare.gov, where you can enter your medications and preferred providers and see how each plan treats them.