Special Needs Plans, Blount County, AL, 2024
We reviewed the top 23 Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plans (SNPs) available in Blount County, Alabama for 2024. This is what we learned:
Key Facts
- Special Needs Plans are not available to everyone. Membership is limited to people with specific diseases or characteristics.
- The average premium for a Special Needs Plan in Blount County is $35.76 per month.
- If you are dual eligible (Medicare and Medicaid), most of your healthcare costs are fully covered.
- SNPs cover the same services that all Medicare Advantage plans must cover.
- SNPs may also cover extra services tailored to the special groups they serve, like extra days in the hospital.
- All SNPs include a Medicare Part D drug plan. The average drug plan deductible is $494.68 per year.
- SNPs tailor plan benefits, provider choices, and drug formularies to meet the specific needs of the groups they serve.
- Medicare rated 63% of all SNPs in Blount County 4 stars or higher.
Blount County, Alabama Medicare SNP Plans
Plan Name | Type | Premium | Network | Part D Deduct. |
Rating |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
UHC Nursing Home Plan EX-F001 | I-SNP | $32 | PPO | $545 | |
VIVA Medicare Extra Value | D-SNP | $41 | HMO | $529 | |
HumanaChoice SNP-DE H5216-370 | D-SNP | $41 | PPO | $545 | |
UHC Dual Complete AL-D002 | D-SNP | $39 | PPO | $545 | |
Aetna Medicare Dual Preferred | D-SNP | $37 | HMO | $545 | |
Aetna Medicare Dual Select | D-SNP | $32 | HMO | $545 | |
Cigna TotalCare | D-SNP | $29 | HMO | $545 | |
Cigna TotalCare Plus | D-SNP | $33 | HMO | $545 | |
Humana Gold Plus SNP-DE H5619-093 | D-SNP | $41 | HMO | $545 | |
UHC Complete Care AL-0005 | C-SNP | $0 | HMO-POS | $0 | |
UHC Dual Complete AL-D001 | D-SNP | $36 | HMO-POS | $545 | |
UHC Dual Complete AL-V002 | D-SNP | $41 | HMO-POS | $545 | |
Wellcare All Dual Assure | D-SNP | $20 | HMO | $545 | |
Wellcare Dual Access | D-SNP | $24 | HMO | $545 | |
Wellcare Dual Access Open | D-SNP | $26 | PPO | $545 | |
Wellcare Dual Liberty | D-SNP | $25 | HMO | $545 | |
Simpra Advantage | D-SNP | $41 | PPO | $545 | |
Simpra Advantage | I-SNP | $41 | PPO | $545 | |
Simpra Advantage Premier | I-SNP | $98 | PPO | $150 |
Blount County, AL
Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plan Information
Medicare Advantage Special Needs Plans, also called SNPs, are the private health insurance alternative to Original Medicare for people with special financial, health, and institutional care needs. There are 23 SNPs available in Blount County, and coverage is provided under strict Medicare regulations and oversight.
SNP plans are limited to those who qualify. To qualify as a special needs individual, you must meet one or more of three criteria:
- An institutionalized individual,
- A dual-eligible (Medicare and Medicaid) person, or
- An individual with a severe or disabling chronic condition.
There are Different Types of Special Needs Plans
Not all Medicare Special Needs Plans are the same. There are three different type:
- Dual-eligible Special Needs Plans (D-SNP) are for beneficiaries with both Medicare and Medicaid benefits.
- Institutional Special Needs Plans (I-SNP) serve people staying in a long-term care facility or a skilled nursing facility.
- Chronic Condition Special Needs Plans (C-SNP) provide coordinated care Medicare beneficiaries with one or more serious diseases, including diabetes, end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and certain lung and heart disease.
D-SNP
Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans (D-SNPs) accept people who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid. Alabama covers some Medicare costs, depending on the individual’s eligibility. Medicaid eligibility categories include:
I-SNP
Institutional Special Needs Plans (I-SNPs) are SNPs that restrict enrollment to Medicare beneficiaries who, for 90 days or longer, have had or are expected to need the level of services provided in a long-term care facility, skilled nursing facility, an intermediate care facility for individuals with intellectual disabilities, or an inpatient psychiatric facility.
Prior to enrolling in a I-SNP, beneficiaries are advised to verify their institution accepts the plan and that its healthcare providers are in the plan's provider network.
C-SNP
Chronic Condition SNPs restrict enrollment to special needs individuals with severe or disabling chronic conditions. About two-thirds of Medicare enrollees have multiple chronic conditions requiring coordination of care among primary care providers, medical and mental health specialists, inpatient and outpatient facilities, and extensive ancillary services related to diagnostic testing and therapeutic management.
There are 15 SNP-specific chronic conditions::
- Chronic alcohol and other drug dependence
- Autoimmune disorders (limited)
- Cancer, excluding pre-cancer conditions or in-situ status
- Cardiovascular disorders (limited)
- Chronic heart failure
- Dementia
- Diabetes mellitus
- End-stage liver disease
- End-stage renal disease (ESRD) requiring dialysis
- Severe hematologic disorders (limited)
- HIV/AIDS
- Chronic lung disorders (limited)
- Chronic and disabling mental health conditions (limited)
- Neurologic disorders (limited)
- Stroke
Do I Need to Wait to Get a Special Needs Plan?
If you qualify for a Blount County SNP, you can join or switch plans during a Medicare Election Period. For most people, the Annual Election Period (AEP), which starts on 15 October and ends 7 December, is the time they update their enrollment.
You also have an Individual Election Period (IEP). Your IEP begins three months before your 65th birthday, includes your birth month, and continues for three months after your birth month.
You may also qualify for a Special Election Period in certain situations, including:
- You are diagnosed with a severe or disabling condition: You can enroll in a Chronic-Condition Special Needs Plan (C-SNP) for beneficiaries with your illness at any time.
- You move into a nursing home or require skilled nursing care at home: You can enroll in an Institution Special Needs Plan (I-SNP) or switch plans at any time.
- You qualify for Medicaid: If you have Medicaid or are newly eligible for Medicaid, you can enroll in a Dual-Eligible Medicare Special Needs Plan (D-SNP) at any time.
- You move outside of your existing Special Needs Plan’s service area: You'll qualify for a Special Election Period to switch to a new plan.
- Your Special Needs Plan leaves the Medicare program: You'll qualify for a Special Election Period to switch plans.
How to Enroll in a Medicare Special Needs Plan in Blount County
There are three ways to enroll in an SNP:
- Call our Trusted Partner at 1-855-728-0510 (TTY 711). This toll-free number is staffed by HealthCompare, the outsourced partner of choice for some of the nation’s largest health plans.
- Call a plan directly. If you know the plan you want, this way is quick and easy. All of our plan pages provide contact information.
- Go to www.Medicare.gov and enroll through the government website. From there you can look up your medications, compare plans, and get your application started online.
Plans Offered
Medicare Advantage and Part D plans and benefits offered by the following carriers: Aetna Medicare, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Aspire Health Plan, Dean Health Plan, Devoted Health, GlobalHealth, Health Care Service Corporation, Cigna Healthcare, Humana, Molina Healthcare, Mutual of Omaha, Premera Blue Cross, Medica Central Health Plan, SCAN Health Plan, Scott and White Health Plan now part of Baylor Scott & White Health, UnitedHealthcare(R), and Wellcare.
Citations & References
- CMS.gov, 2024 SNP Landscape Source Files, Last Accessed October 14, 2023
- Medicare.gov, "Special Needs Plans (SNP)", Last Accessed September 11, 2023
- CMS.gov, "Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans (D-SNPs)", Last Accessed September 11, 2023
- MedicareWire.com, "What is Medicare Advantage?", Last Accessed August, 2023