Medicare Special Needs Plans (SNPs) are a type of Medicare Advantage (MA) plan that limits membership to institutionalized individuals, those who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid, and people with chronic or disabling conditions. The insurance benefits of these plans are tailored specifically to the type of population enrolled. Enrollment information on each type of plan is released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on a monthly basis. Data from May 2007 forward is available to review. AAF reviewed the most recent data from September 2016 and compared it to September data from past years.

MA plans are popular with consumers, and these specialty plans are no different. The number of people using SNPs has steadily increased every year. Dual Eligible plans are by far the most popular SNPs. In 2016 there were over 1.8 million people enrolled into a Dual Eligible SNP. Fewer people have enrolled in institutionalized plans in recent years. Since September 2007, enrollment has decreased from 143,905 to 61,647. Enrollment in SNPs for people with disabling or chronic conditions has been more variable, but enrollment in 2016 was the highest of any other September since the program began with 345,770 individuals enrolled.