Special Needs Plans And The Coordination Of Benefits And Services For Dual Eligibles
Abstract
Special Needs Plans (SNPs) are a new type of Medicare Advantage (MA) plan with the potential to coordinate Medicare and Medicaid benefits and services for dually eligible beneficiaries. However, experience to date suggests that SNPs have not greatly expanded the number of people enrolled in joint Medicare-Medicaid products. SNPs need to have some contractual relationship with state Medicaid plans to add value for dually eligible beneficiaries beyond traditional MA plans. Although SNP enrollment is higher in states with such a relationship than in other states, several steps are identified to further expand this market and improve coordination between SNPs and state Medicaid programs. These plans have promise for coordinating care under Medicare and Medicaid, but thus far enrollment has been modest. Footnotes David Grabowski ( grabowski@hcp.med.harvard.edu ) is an associate professor in the Department of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School in Boston, Massachusetts. David Grabowski gratefully acknowledges support from the National Institute on Aging (Grant nos. K01 AG24403 and R01 AG30079) and the Commonwealth Fund.