Medicaid plans › Washington, DC
Washington, DC Medicaid Managed-Care Plans for Providers
Enrollments are billed 50% at the start and 50% at submission; everything else 100% at the start.
DC Medicaid is run by the DC Department of Health Care Finance. 238,159 people were enrolled in its 5 managed-care plans in 2024. To see their patients, a provider enrolls with DC Medicaid through the DC Medicaid provider portal (Conduent), then applies to each plan separately.
| Plan | Members (2024) | Share | Parent |
|---|---|---|---|
| AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia | 106,839 | 44.9% | Independence Health Group |
| MedStar Family Choice District of Columbia | 56,860 | 23.9% | MedStar Health |
| Amerigroup District of Columbia | 56,651 | 23.8% | Elevance Health |
| UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of District of Columbia | 12,914 | 5.4% | UnitedHealth Group |
| Health Services for Children with Special Needs | 4,895 | 2.1% | In-state |
How Joining Works in Washington, DC
First the state: DC Medicaid enrollment through the DC Medicaid provider portal (Conduent), 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 Washington, DC Plan
AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia (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.
Amerigroup District of Columbia (Elevance Health): Elevance Health plans take participation requests through the plan's provider site for that state, most of them now inside Availity Essentials, and credential from your CAQH ProView (DataSpring) profile. Each state is its own contract.
UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of District of Columbia (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.
MedStar Family Choice District of Columbia, Health Services for Children with Special Needs: 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 Washington, DC: Medicare, DC Medicaid and commercial credentialing.
Questions
Which Washington, DC Medicaid plan is the largest?
AmeriHealth Caritas District of Columbia, with 106,839 members in 2024, 44.9% of the 238,159 people enrolled in Washington, DC's Medicaid managed-care plans.
Do I have to join every Washington, DC 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 DC 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.