What Is the Average Cost of Medicare Supplement Insurance?

• by Christian Worstell
• January 12, 2024
• Reviewed by John Krahnert

The average cost of a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan is $139 per month in 2023.¹ But the average cost of each type of Medigap plan can vary quite a bit from one plan type to another.

Factors such as age, gender, smoking status, health and where you live can also affect Medigap plan rates.

How much does each Medigap plan cost?

The chart below shows the average monthly premium for each type of Medicare Supplement Insurance plan sold nationwide in 2022.¹

The average Medigap premium cost across all plans in 2022 was $128 per month, but some types of Medigap plans have far fewer enrollees than other types of plans. This difference in enrollment affects the average monthly premium that is actually paid by Medigap beneficiaries.

(Data excludes Plan K and Plan L, which have a combined enrollment of fewer than 1.5% of all Medigap beneficiaries).²

* Medigap Plan J was discontinued for new enrollees in 2010. Only beneficiaries who enrolled in the plan prior to that time may be currently enrolled in Plan J.

⁺ Plan F and Plan C are only available to beneficiaries who first became eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020. If you were eligible for Medicare before that date or have either plan, you may be able to stay enrolled or sign up for a new Plan F or Plan C if they're available where you live.

What affects the cost of Medicare Supplement Insurance?

There are several factors that affect the price of a Medigap plan, such as the plan benefits, the Medicare Supplement Insurance company selling the plan, the company’s age-related pricing system and when you buy your Medigap plan.

Plan benefits

While there are certainly exceptions to the rule, Medigap plans with more benefits will typically cost more than plans offering fewer benefits.

There are nine potential benefits that can be covered by the 10 standardized Medicare Supplement Insurance plans sold in most states (Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Wisconsin have different standards). Each type of plan offers partial or full coverage for a different combination of these benefits.

You can use the chart below to compare the benefits offered by each type of standardized Medigap plan.

Medicare Supplement Insurance companies

Medicare Supplement Insurance plans are sold by private insurance companies who are free to set their own prices.

Medigap Plan C sold by one carrier might cost slightly more or less than Plan C sold by another carrier, though the two plans offer the same benefits.

Your location

Where you live plays a part in determining the price of Medicare Supplement Insurance plans available to you. In the same way that a gallon of milk might cost more in one city than another, so too can a Medigap plan.

In fact, the average cost of Medigap Plan G in New York was $175.50 per month in 2022. The average cost for Medigap Plan G in Iowa was $120.00 per month in 2022.¹

Medigap pricing models

There are three different age-related pricing models that Medicare Supplement Insurance companies use to determine their Medigap plan rates. Each type of cost model can affect the average price of a given plan.

• Community-rated
  With community-rated Medigap plans, every member of the plan pays the same rate, regardless of age.
  
  For example, an 82-year-old who enrolls in a community-rated Plan G will pay the same Medigap premiums as a 68-year-old beneficiary who has the same Plan G in the same market.
  
  
• Issue-age-rated
  With issue-age-rated Medigap plans, premiums are based on your age at the time you enrolled in the plan.
  
  You will typically pay less for an issue-age-rated plan if you enroll in the plan when you’re younger. Your premiums also won’t increase based on your age.
  
  
• Attained-age-rated
  Attained-age-rated Medigap plans set their premiums based on your current age. As you age, your Medigap plan premiums will gradually increase each year.

Medigap premiums can increase over time due to inflation and other factors, regardless of the pricing model your insurance company uses.

Underwriting and Medigap guaranteed issue rights

Depending on when you sign up for a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan, you may be subject to medical underwriting.

Underwriting is the process by which an insurance company assesses your current health and your health history to determine your Medigap plan costs. If you are in poor health, the insurance company may deem you to be a higher risk, and they may charge you more for your Medigap plan. If your health history is too high risk for the insurance company, they may choose to deny you coverage.

If you enroll during your Medigap Open Enrollment Period (OEP), Medicare Supplement Insurance companies cannot use medical underwriting to determine your plan costs.

Your Medigap Open Enrollment Period is a six-month period that begins when you are at least 65 and enrolled in Medicare Part B. If you enroll in a Medigap plan after your Medigap Open Enrollment Period, insurance companies reserve the right to utilize medical underwriting to determine your plan premium or if they will offer you coverage at all.

The ability to enroll in a Medigap plan without medical underwriting is called a Medigap guaranteed issue right. In addition to your Medigap OEP, there are several Medigap guaranteed issue rights that allow you to sign up for a Medigap plan without medical underwriting.

Discounts

Some Medigap insurance companies may offer discounts to women, non-smokers, married couples and for other reasons.

Be sure to ask a licensed insurance agent about any possible discounts that may be available for Medigap plans available near you.

Are Medicare Supplement Insurance plans worth it?

Depending on the average cost of Medicare Supplement Insurance plans in your area, you may wonder if the benefits are worth the premium costs.

When deciding whether or not to enroll in a Medigap plan, consider some of the potential costs that you may face without the protection of a Medigap plan.

• Medicare Part A coinsurance for inpatient hospital stays can reach $400 per day on the 61st day of your stay, and $800 per day beyond day 90 in 2023.
  
  Even though it’s unlikely to encounter Part A coinsurance because it’s associated with lengthy hospital stays, just a single days-worth of Part A coinsurance payments would cost more than the average Medicare Supplement Insurance plan cost per month.
  
  Each type of Medigap plan covers Medicare Part A coinsurance and hospital costs.
  
  
• Medicare Part B typically requires a 20 percent coinsurance for medical services and items you receive after you meet your Part B deductible (which is $226 per year in 2023).
  
  The 20 percent coinsurance payment required for a single $640 medical bill would equal the average monthly premium for a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan in 2023 ($128).
  
  Each type of Medigap plan provides at least partial coverage for Part B coinsurance/copayments, and two Medigap plans (Plan C and Plan F) also cover the Part B deductible.
  
  
• The Medicare Part A deductible is $1,600 per benefit period in 2023. You could possibly encounter multiple benefit periods within the same calendar year. A single Part A benefit period deductible is slightly more than the average annual cost of a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan ($1,537).
  
  Each type of Medigap plan except for Plan A provides at least partial coverage for the Medicare Part A deductible.
  
  
• The cost of emergency care received in a foreign country can be highly unpredictable. Original Medicare does not typically cover medical care you receive abroad.
  
  Six types of Medigap plans provide coverage for 80 percent of the costs for qualified foreign emergency medical care.

Health care costs can be unpredictable and unexpected. Having a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan can make your health care spending more predictable, which can help you better budget for your care.

Can I buy a Medicare Supplement Insurance plan at any time?

You can enroll in a Medigap plan or change Medigap plans at any time of the year. However, you may be subject to medical underwriting as part of the application process.

The best time to buy a Medigap plan, however, is during your Medigap Open Enrollment period or during another time when you have a Medigap guaranteed issue right. This can help protect you from potentially paying higher Medicare Supplement Insurance costs due to your health.

Read additional medicare costs guides to learn more about Medicare costs and how they will affect you.

Compare your Medicare Supplement Insurance plan options

A licensed insurance agent can help you compare the average cost of Medicare Supplement Insurance plans in your area and find a plan that works for you.

About the author

Christian Worstell is a senior Medicare and health insurance writer with MedicareAdvantage.com. He is also a licensed health insurance agent. Christian is well-known in the insurance industry for the thousands of educational articles he’s written, helping Americans better understand their health insurance and Medicare coverage.

Christian’s work as a Medicare expert has appeared in several top-tier and trade news outlets including Forbes, MarketWatch, WebMD and Yahoo! Finance.

Christian has written hundreds of articles for MedicareAvantage.com that teach Medicare beneficiaries the best practices for navigating Medicare. His articles are read by thousands of older Americans each month. By better understanding their health care coverage, readers may hopefully learn how to limit their out-of-pocket Medicare spending and access quality medical care.

Christian’s passion for his role stems from his desire to make a difference in the senior community. He strongly believes that the more beneficiaries know about their Medicare coverage, the better their overall health and wellness is as a result.

A current resident of Raleigh, Christian is a graduate of Shippensburg University with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.

If you’re a member of the media looking to connect with Christian, please don’t hesitate to email our public relations team at Mike@tzhealthmedia.com.

 

 

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