Finding the Right Medicare Supplement Plans for Your Needs

• by Christian Worstell
• August 4, 2023
• Reviewed by John Krahnert

Anyone shopping for Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) may naturally want to know which plan is right for them. There are 10 plans available in most states, and each one offers its own combination of standardized benefits.

We’ll help you compare the benefits and costs of each type of Medigap plan to find out which plan is right for your health care needs.

A licensed insurance agent can help learn about the Medigap plans that are sold in your area.

Medicare Supplement Plan F is the best-selling plan, but is it right for you?

Medigap Plan F is the only plan that offers coverage for all nine benefit areas standardized by the government.

As you can see in the Medicare Supplement Insurance plans comparison chart above, Plan F checks every box.

Plan F is by far the best-selling Medicare Supplement Insurance plan. In fact, 46 percent of everyone enrolled in Medicare Supplement Insurance belong to Plan F.¹ 

The second-most popular Medigap plan, Plan G, accounts for 27 percent of Medigap enrollees.¹ However, just because a plan is popular doesn’t mean it’s the right fit for your health care needs. Consult with a licensed insurance agent to determine which plan is right for you.

Medicare Supplement Insurance Plan F after 2020

Due to the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015, Medicare Supplement Insurance plans will no longer be allowed to cover the Medicare Part B deductible. Therefore, Medigap Plan F and Plan C (the only two plans that cover the Part B deductible) aren't available to new Medicare beneficiaries.

Those who enrolled in Plan F or Plan C before 2020 will be allowed to keep their coverage for as long as they wish. If you became eligible for Medicare prior to 2020 and decide you want Plan F, you may be able to buy it if it is available where you live.

Medigap Plan G covers a wide range of costs

As mentioned above, Medigap Plan G is the second-most popular plan among Medicare Supplement Insurance beneficiaries. 

Plan G covers everything that Plan F does, with the exception of the Medicare Part B deductible, which is $226 per year in 2023.

Because the Medicare Part B deductible averages out to just around $19 per month in 2023, a Medigap Plan G option that is at least $19 cheaper per month than a Plan F option could save you some money over the year, compared to enrolling in Plan F.

Medicare Supplement Plan C

Medigap Plan C is another option that can offer tremendous value to beneficiaries. Plan C covers everything that Plan F covers, with the exception of Medicare Part B excess charges. 

Medicare Part B excess charges are incurred when a beneficiary receives services or products from a health care provider that does not accept Medicare assignment. In this case, the provider may charge up to 15 percent more than the Medicare-approved amount for the services. 

While having coverage for Medicare Part B excess charges can certainly be helpful, it may not be necessary if beneficiaries only seek care from providers who accept Medicare assignment. Always ask a provider if they accept Medicare assignment — that is, they accept Medicare’s reimbursement as payment in full for their services — before arriving for an appointment.

As previously mentioned, Plan C is not available to new enrollees who became eligible for Medicare after Jan. 1, 2020.

Medicare Supplement Plan D

Medigap Plan D could be the best Medicare Supplement Insurance plan for some enrollees, depending on their coverage needs. Plan D covers everything that Plan F does, with the exception of the Medicare Part B deductible and Part B excess charges.

As previously discussed, the Part B deductible averages out to only $19 per month in 2023. A Plan D monthly premium plus the Part B deductible may actually be cheaper in the long run than a Plan F monthly premium, depending on the plan you enroll in. 

And because Medicare Part B excess charges can be avoided in many cases, coverage for that benefit may not always be necessary, depending on your needs and situation.

Medicare Supplement Plan N

Plan N offers the exact same coverage as Medigap Plan D, except for one difference: When it comes to Medicare Part B coinsurance, Medigap Plan N requires a coinsurance payment of up to $20 for some office visits and up to $50 for emergency room visits that do not result in an inpatient admission.

Given these minimal coinsurance requirements, Plan N can sometimes be a better value than Plan D if the difference in premiums is significant.

Medicare Supplement Plan L

Plan L covers only 75 percent of a number of out-of-pocket Medicare costs, but it can come with one potential advantage over other Medicare Supplement Insurance plans: Plan L includes an annual out-of-pocket spending limit of $3,470 in 2023.

This means that once a beneficiary spends $3,470 on Original Medicare costs in 2023, Medigap Plan L will cover 100 percent of all additional Medicare costs for the remainder of the year. With its out-of-pocket limit, Plan L can help protect beneficiaries from potentially high health care costs.

The only other Medicare Supplement Insurance plan to include an out-of-pocket limit is Medigap Plan K, which features a limit of $6,940 in 2023.

Choosing the right Medigap plan for you

There is no definitive Medicare Supplement Insurance plan that is the “best.” The right plan for you is the one that is most closely aligned with your needs and budget.

The right plan for one person may be quite different than the right Medigap plan for someone else.

A licensed insurance agent can help learn about the Medigap plans that are sold in your area.

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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