Medicare Advantage

Frisco's 2027 Chronic Condition SNPs: who qualifies and the carriers offering them

People in Frisco can choose from 81 Medicare Advantage plans for 2027, against 97 this year. 37 of this year’s plans are gone, 21 are new to Collin County, and 30 that continue have changed their premium, deductible, plan type or name, 9 of them under a new name.

Frisco, Texas — As fall 2026 brings the Annual Enrollment Period for 2027 Medicare coverage, people living with a long-term health condition in Collin County have a specific kind of Medicare Advantage plan to consider: the Chronic Condition Special Needs Plan, or C-SNP. For 2027, 12 of the 81 Medicare Advantage plans offered in Collin County are C-SNPs, built around a qualifying diagnosis rather than sold to the general Medicare population.

Enrollment runs October 15 through December 7, 2026, with coverage starting January 1, 2027. But C-SNPs come with their own rules — you need a provider to confirm a qualifying condition, and if you qualify, you may be able to enroll outside the usual window.

What is a C-SNP and how does it work in Frisco?

A Chronic Condition Special Needs Plan is a type of Medicare Advantage plan designed for people living with a specific chronic illness. In Collin County, which includes Frisco, 12 C-SNPs are offered for 2027. Every C-SNP in the county includes prescription drug coverage, so Part D is built in.

The idea behind a C-SNP is to tailor the plan — the drug list, the provider network, and care management — around one condition or a related group of conditions. For example, a plan built for people with diabetes may be structured to include endocrinologists and the medications most used by people with diabetes. A plan built for people with end-stage renal disease is organized around kidney care.

Because the plan is narrowly built, you cannot sign up unless you actually have the condition it serves.

Who qualifies for a C-SNP, and how is the diagnosis confirmed?

To enroll in a C-SNP, Medicare requires that a qualifying chronic condition be verified by a licensed health care provider. In practice, after you apply, the plan contacts your doctor (or asks you to supply a form your doctor signs) to confirm the diagnosis. If the provider doesn't verify it within the plan's time limit, enrollment can be cancelled.

CMS lists 15 chronic conditions that can qualify someone for a C-SNP, including diabetes, chronic heart failure, cardiovascular disorders, chronic lung disorders, end-stage renal disease requiring dialysis, dementia, and several others. Not every C-SNP covers every condition on the list — each plan picks the condition or combination it is built for.

Which carriers offer C-SNPs in Collin County for 2027?

Six carriers offer Chronic Condition Special Needs Plans in Collin County for 2027: Aetna (CVS Health), Elevance Health (Anthem), Humana, ProCare Advantage, UnitedHealthcare, and Verda Health Plan of Texas. Humana offers the most C-SNPs in the county with four; Elevance Health, ProCare Advantage and UnitedHealthcare each offer two; Aetna and Verda each offer one.

The 12 C-SNPs available in Collin County for 2027, in alphabetical order by carrier, are:

• Aetna Medicare Chronic Care Total (HMO C-SNP) — Aetna (CVS Health); renamed from Aetna Medicare Prime Chronic Total for 2027
• Wellpoint Chronic Care (HMO-POS C-SNP) — Elevance Health (Anthem)
• Wellpoint Kidney Care (HMO-POS C-SNP) — Elevance Health (Anthem)
• Humana DaVita Kidney Care (PPO C-SNP) — Humana; new for 2027
• Humana DaVita Kidney Care (PPO C-SNP) — Humana; new for 2027
• Humana Gold Plus - Diabetes and Heart (HMO C-SNP) — Humana
• Humana Gold Plus - Diabetes and Heart (HMO C-SNP) — Humana
• ProCare Advantage - Diabetes Care Management (HMO-POS C-SNP) — ProCare Advantage
• ProCare Advantage - Kidney Care (HMO-POS C-SNP) — ProCare Advantage
• UHC Complete Care TX-29 (Regional PPO C-SNP) — UnitedHealthcare
• UHC Complete Care TX-3P (HMO-POS C-SNP) — UnitedHealthcare
• Verda Noble Chronic Care (HMO C-SNP) — Verda Health Plan of Texas

Only plans whose names state a condition — "Kidney Care," "Diabetes and Heart," or "Diabetes Care Management" — can be identified with that condition here. Others are built around a condition or group of conditions you'd confirm with the plan directly before enrolling.

The table on this page lists every Medicare Advantage plan available in the county, including the C-SNPs, D-SNPs and I-SNPs.

When can you enroll in a C-SNP in Frisco?

Two enrollment windows matter. The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 – December 7, 2026, with changes taking effect January 1, 2027. During this window anyone eligible can join, switch or drop a Medicare Advantage plan, including a C-SNP.

Outside that window, people who qualify for a Special Needs Plan get their own Special Enrollment Period (SEP). If a provider confirms you have a qualifying chronic condition, you can generally use that SEP to enroll in a C-SNP once during each of the first three quarters of the year (January–March, April–June, July–September). The fourth quarter is covered by the regular Annual Enrollment Period.

If you lose eligibility — for example, if a plan determines your condition is no longer verified — you move into a grace period during which you can choose another plan.

What's changing for C-SNPs in Collin County in 2027?

Across all Medicare Advantage plans in Collin County, 21 plans are new for 2027, 37 are not returning, and 9 have been renamed. Within the C-SNP category specifically, two Humana DaVita Kidney Care (PPO C-SNP) plans are new for 2027, and Aetna Medicare Chronic Care Total (HMO C-SNP) is the renamed version of what used to be Aetna Medicare Prime Chronic Total.

If you are already enrolled in a C-SNP, your plan's Annual Notice of Change (ANOC), mailed in September, lists any changes to your plan for 2027 — including whether it is being renamed, restructured or discontinued. If you do nothing and your plan is still offered, it renews automatically with those changes applied.

What else should Frisco residents know for the 2027 plan year?

A few program-level facts shape every Part D and Medicare Advantage decision this fall:

• The Part D out-of-pocket cap rises to $2,400 in 2027, up from $2,100 in 2026.
• The Part D maximum deductible rises to $700 in 2027, up from $615 in 2026.
• The coverage gap (the old "donut hole") was eliminated in 2025; Part D now has three phases.
• The Medicare Prescription Payment Plan lets you spread drug costs across the plan year in monthly amounts instead of paying at the pharmacy counter.
• The 2027 Part B standard premium and deductible and the 2027 IRMAA brackets have not been announced yet; CMS typically publishes them in the fall.

Because C-SNPs include drug coverage, the Part D figures above apply to them.