Medicaid plans › Colorado
Colorado Medicaid Managed-Care Plans for Providers
Enrollments are billed 50% at the start and 50% at submission; everything else 100% at the start.
Health First Colorado is run by the Colorado Department of Health Care Policy and Financing. 103,597 people were enrolled in its 2 managed-care plans in 2024. To see their patients, a provider enrolls with Health First Colorado through the Health First Colorado Provider Web Portal (Gainwell), then applies to each plan separately.
| Plan | Members (2024) | Share | Parent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Denver Health Medicaid Choice | 69,431 | 67% | In-state |
| Rocky Mountain Health Plans PRIME | 34,166 | 33% | UnitedHealth Group |
How Joining Works in Colorado
First the state: Health First Colorado enrollment through the Health First Colorado Provider Web Portal (Gainwell), which gives you the Medicaid ID every plan asks for. Then the plans: each takes its own participation request and credentials you from your CAQH ProView (DataSpring) profile. 1 parent company runs plans here, and plans owned by the same company still contract state by state.
How to Join Each Colorado Plan
Rocky Mountain Health Plans PRIME (UnitedHealth Group): UnitedHealthcare Community Plans use UnitedHealthcare's provider onboarding: a participation request on the UnitedHealthcare provider site, credentialing from your CAQH ProView (DataSpring) profile, then a state-specific Community Plan agreement.
Denver Health Medicaid Choice: This plan is run in-state rather than by a national carrier, so participation requests go to the plan's own provider relations or contracting team, listed on its provider website.
Also in Colorado: Medicare, Health First Colorado and commercial credentialing.
Questions
Which Colorado Medicaid plan is the largest?
Denver Health Medicaid Choice, with 69,431 members in 2024, 67% of the 103,597 people enrolled in Colorado's Medicaid managed-care plans.
Do I have to join every Colorado Medicaid plan?
No. Each plan is a separate contract. Practices usually start with the two or three largest plans in their county, then add others as patients ask for them. All of them require Health First Colorado enrollment first.
Membership from KFF, Medicaid MCO Enrollment by Plan and Parent Firm, 2024. Plans change when the state rebids its contracts; we confirm the current list on every file.