Molina Is Leaving the South Carolina Marketplace for 2027: What Members Should Do

Molina Healthcare is not offering any HealthCare.gov plans in South Carolina for 2027. It sold plans in 37 counties in 2026, so if you had a Molina plan, it won't renew. HealthCare.gov may move you into a similar plan from another company, but you can choose your own instead: enroll by December 15, 2026 to start January 1, or by January 15, 2027 to start February 1.

That plan is picked automatically and may not match your doctors, prescriptions or budget.

Your Molina plan covers you through the end of the 2026 plan year and does not carry into 2027.

Insurers that stop offering a plan must send a discontinuation notice, which CMS guidance for 2027 says goes out before Open Enrollment starts. It lists your last day of coverage and the date to pick a new plan. Check your mail and your HealthCare.gov message center.

HealthCare.gov re-enrolls people who don't pick a plan, so they don't end up with a gap in coverage. Federal rules (45 CFR 155.335) set the order it follows:

1. Your same plan, if it's still offered.
2. A similar plan from the same company, if your plan is gone but the company still sells others.
3. If the company has no Marketplace plans left, a similar plan from a different company, as far as state law allows, following the state regulator's direction or HealthCare.gov's own choice.

Molina members fall into step 3. HealthCare.gov's guidance says that if your company isn't offering similar plans next year, it will re-enroll you in a comparable one. The CMS notice language says the Marketplace "may" automatically enroll you, so don't count on it. Log in and confirm you have a 2027 plan.

A "comparable" plan can still differ from your Molina plan:

• Network. The new carrier may not include your doctor or hospital.
• Drugs. Your prescriptions may sit on a different tier, or need prior authorization.
• Premium. Your subsidy is recalculated against the 2027 benchmark, so what you pay each month can change even if the full price looks similar.

If you were already moved into a new plan, see our guide: Got auto-enrolled into a new plan after Molina's exit?

You don't have to keep the plan HealthCare.gov picks. During Open Enrollment (November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027) you can choose any plan sold in your county.

• Enroll by December 15, 2026 for coverage starting January 1, 2027. Choosing by this date also replaces the automatic re-enrollment.
• Enroll December 16 to January 15 for coverage starting February 1, 2027. If your automatic plan already started January 1, you can still switch through January 15.

To avoid a gap, aim for December 15. More detail is in our 2027 Open Enrollment guide and our December 15 deadline checklist.

The benchmark is the second-lowest-cost silver plan in your county, and your premium tax credit is based on it. In 2026, a Molina plan was the benchmark in 12 South Carolina counties.

Benchmark silver rose in all 46 counties this year. The statewide enrollment-weighted average was +24.8%, and full details are in our 2027 rate changes by county. When the benchmark carrier changes, the plan that was cheapest for you after subsidies last year may not be cheapest now, so we recommend not auto-renewing without a comparison.

For each county where Molina sold plans in 2026, the table shows the 2027 carriers, Molina's lowest-priced silver plan last year and the lowest-priced silver plan this year.

• Ten former Molina counties are down to two carriers, Ambetter and BlueCross BlueShield of SC: Abbeville, Bamberg, Barnwell, Edgefield, Greenwood, Jasper, Lee, Marlboro, McCormick and Sumter.
• New carriers arrived in some counties. Oscar now sells in Charleston, Colleton, Florence, Marion and York. First Choice Next is new in Aiken, Beaufort, Darlington, Florence, Lexington and York.
• Plan types. BCBS BlueEssentials and BlueConnect plans are EPOs. Every other plan on the SC Marketplace is an HMO, and there are no PPOs.

Your county page has the full picture, including hospitals: Charleston, Richland, Lexington, Aiken, Berkeley, Greenwood, York and Lancaster. You can also check our carrier-by-county map.

Here in the Midlands, near our Irmo office, former Molina members in Richland and Lexington counties have three carriers to choose from: Ambetter, BCBS and First Choice Next. In Richland, Molina's lowest silver was $596 last year. The lowest silver for 2027 is a BCBS plan at $682. In Lexington, the lowest silver is a First Choice Next plan at $703, compared with Molina's $654 last year. Both figures are full-price monthly premiums for a 40-year-old, before subsidies.

Hospital networks differ a lot between carriers in Columbia, so check your hospital before you pick.

Our agents go through the same short checklist with every former Molina member:

1. Doctors and hospitals. Look each one up in the specific plan's network. One carrier can have several networks.
2. Prescriptions. Check tier, prior authorization and quantity limits. Note that Wegovy and Zepbound are on no SC Marketplace carrier's drug list for 2027.
3. Total yearly cost. Add up the premium, the deductible and the out-of-pocket maximum. A low premium with a high deductible isn't a bargain if you see doctors often.
4. Your subsidy. The enhanced premium tax credits ended after 2025. For 2027, help is generally limited to households between 100% and 400% of the federal poverty level unless Congress acts. See who qualifies for an ACA subsidy in SC.

Our agents can run this comparison with you over the phone or at our Irmo office. Our help costs you nothing because carriers pay us.