Medicaid plans › South Carolina
South Carolina Medicaid Managed-Care Plans for Providers
Enrollments are billed 50% at the start and 50% at submission; everything else 100% at the start.
Healthy Connections Medicaid is run by the South Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. 812,589 people were enrolled in its 5 managed-care plans in 2024. To see their patients, a provider enrolls with Healthy Connections Medicaid through the SCDHHS provider enrollment portal, then applies to each plan separately.
| Plan | Members (2024) | Share | Parent |
|---|---|---|---|
| First Choice by Select Health of South Carolina | 323,781 | 39.8% | Independence Health Group |
| Absolute Total Care | 167,573 | 20.6% | Centene |
| Healthy Blue by Blue Choice | 150,728 | 18.5% | In-state |
| Molina Healthcare of South Carolina | 140,589 | 17.3% | Molina Healthcare |
| Humana Healthy Horizons | 29,918 | 3.7% | Humana |
How Joining Works in South Carolina
First the state: Healthy Connections Medicaid enrollment through the SCDHHS provider enrollment portal, 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. 4 parent companies run plans here, and plans owned by the same company still contract state by state.
How to Join Each South Carolina Plan
First Choice by Select Health of South Carolina (Independence Health Group): Plans in the AmeriHealth Caritas family take participation requests on each plan's own provider website and credential from your CAQH ProView (DataSpring) profile.
Absolute Total Care (Centene): Centene runs this plan alongside its Ambetter and Wellcare products. Each Centene plan takes its own contract request on the plan's provider website, credentials from your CAQH ProView (DataSpring) profile, and will not load a provider without the state Medicaid ID.
Molina Healthcare of South Carolina (Molina Healthcare): Molina credentials each state separately. The contract request goes through the state's Molina provider site and requires an active state Medicaid enrollment; credentialing uses your CAQH ProView (DataSpring) profile.
Humana Healthy Horizons (Humana): Humana's Medicaid plans take participation requests through Humana's provider site for that state and credential from your CAQH ProView (DataSpring) profile.
Healthy Blue by Blue 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 South Carolina: Medicare, Healthy Connections Medicaid and commercial credentialing.
Questions
Which South Carolina Medicaid plan is the largest?
First Choice by Select Health of South Carolina, with 323,781 members in 2024, 39.8% of the 812,589 people enrolled in South Carolina's Medicaid managed-care plans.
Do I have to join every South Carolina 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 Healthy Connections Medicaid 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.