C-SNPs Could Impact Dual Integration
While Medicare Advantage (MA) Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans (D-SNP) membership is growing rapidly, a new Health Affairs Forefront blog calls out that growth in Chronic Care SNPs (C-SNP) could actually create barriers to greater integration of Medicare and Medicaid.
The authors note the huge growth in C-SNP enrollment over the past few years. C-SNP product offerings have grown from 303 in 2024 to 372 in 2025. The total number of Medicare beneficiaries enrolled in C-SNPs has increased from 629,560 to 1,069,660 in that timeframe. In 2016, there were only 137 C-SNPs with 315,200 beneficiaries.
The authors note that in 2025 there are now 125,638 full-benefit dual eligible individuals and 86,815 partial dual eligibles in C-SNPs. About 28% of the full-benefit dual eligible beneficiaries were previously enrolled in a plan that offered some form of integration in the prior year.
The authors propose a few reforms to ensure dual integration is not scuttled, including applying the SNP “look-alike” regulation to C-SNPs as well. By 2026, this would potentially translate to terminations of about 15% of the C-SNPs with at least 100 enrollees.
I understand the point being made, but I do not see these trends as fundamentally impacting the ultimate progress toward integration of the two public healthcare programs. I would stand more for choice for beneficiaries. Some are attracted to benefits to address their chronic conditions, while others are attracted to plans that truly integrate care between Medicare and Medicaid.
#medicareadvantage #snps #dualeligbles
