Oscar Health Enters South Carolina: 2027 Plans, Counties & Hospital Network

Oscar Health is selling HealthCare.gov plans in South Carolina for the first time in 2027, in six counties: Charleston, Colleton, Florence, Horry, Marion and York. It offers 14 HMO plans. Its network includes Roper Hospital, Bon Secours St. Francis Xavier, Trident Medical Center, Grand Strand Medical Center and Piedmont Medical Center in Rock Hill. In York County, Oscar's Silver Simple Diabetes plan is the 2027 benchmark silver plan, at a full-price monthly premium of $701 for a 40-year-old, before subsidies.

Oscar's prices differ a lot from county to county. It has the lowest silver and gold premiums in York, and some of the highest in Florence and Marion.

York County is where Oscar is most competitive. It has the lowest silver plan, the benchmark plan and the lowest gold plan ($763) in the county. York is one of the most crowded markets in the state, with five carriers: Ambetter, BCBS, InStil, Oscar and First Choice Next.

In Charleston and Colleton, Oscar's plans cost more than the cheapest options. They may still suit you if you want its hospital network. In Horry, Marion and Florence, Oscar's lowest silver plan costs well above the county benchmark. Because subsidies are tied to the benchmark, you'd pay the whole difference yourself.

All 14 Oscar plans are HMOs, meaning you use the plan's network and choose a primary care doctor. The price range is the full-price monthly premium for a 40-year-old across the six counties, before subsidies.

• The Bronze Elite + PCP Saver Plus plans have no medical deductible and charge copays instead. An ER visit is $2,500 and an inpatient stay is $3,000 per day. Brand-name drugs have a $7,500 pharmacy deductible.
• Four plans add adult dental and vision, at a higher premium than the matching plan without them.
• The Gold Simple with Early Retirement Benefits plan has $0 primary care visits and $0 generics, with an $8,500 out-of-pocket maximum. We cover who it fits in our early-retiree guide.

Four Oscar plans are built for people managing diabetes: Bronze Simple Diabetes and Silver Simple Diabetes, each also offered with adult dental and vision. For many people, the most useful is Silver Simple Diabetes:

• $0 primary care visits and a $40 specialist copay
• $0 generic prescriptions
• $75 copay for preferred brand drugs after the deductible
• $6,500 deductible and $10,600 out-of-pocket maximum

If your income qualifies for cost-sharing reductions, a silver plan's deductible and out-of-pocket maximum can be lower than the figures above. That matters most in York, where Silver Simple Diabetes is the benchmark.

Bronze Simple Diabetes has a lower premium. It comes with a $5,500 deductible, $50 primary care, a $150 specialist copay, $4 generics and a $12,000 out-of-pocket maximum.

Drug coverage. On Oscar's 2027 drug list, these diabetes medications are all preferred-tier brands: Jardiance (quantity limit), and Ozempic, Mounjaro, Trulicity and Rybelsus (prior authorization and quantity limits). Insulin glargine (Lantus, Basaglar, Semglee) and insulin lispro (Humalog, Admelog) are on the preferred tier. Wegovy and Zepbound are not on Oscar's drug list, and they aren't on any other SC Marketplace carrier's list either.

For a side-by-side with every carrier, see Best 2027 SC Marketplace plans for diabetes.

Oscar's 2027 network status at the hospitals we track in and around its six counties:

The network is strongest in the Charleston area, around the HCA hospitals, and at Piedmont in Rock Hill. If you live in Florence or Marion counties, none of the main local hospitals we track is in Oscar's network. The closest one that is in network is Carolina Pines in Hartsville. If you see MUSC in Charleston, or Conway Medical Center or McLeod Loris in Horry, check before you switch.

Our network guides cover Roper St. Francis and Bon Secours, MUSC Health, Grand Strand, Conway and Tidelands and Charlotte hospitals for York and Lancaster residents.

Oscar is worth a close look if:

• You live in York County. Oscar is the lowest-priced silver and gold carrier there.
• You use Piedmont Rock Hill, Roper, St. Francis Xavier, Trident, Summerville or Grand Strand.
• You manage diabetes and want $0 primary care and $0 generics on a silver plan.
• You're an early retiree who wants a gold plan with $0 primary care.

Look at other carriers first if your main hospital is MUSC, McLeod or Conway Medical Center, or if you live in Florence or Marion and price is your priority.

Since this is Oscar's first year in South Carolina, you won't have a local track record to go on. Our agents can check your doctors and prescriptions against Oscar's directory and drug list before you enroll, at no cost to you.