Medicare Supplement plans, also known as Medigap insurance plans, are Medicare option that helps cover the gaps of Original Medicare. It has ten standardized plans which provide different levels of benefits. You can compare Medigap plans using a Medicare Supplement plans comparison chart to find the best plan that suits your needs.
How to compare Medicare Supplement plans using a Medigap comparison chart?
Depending on where you live, you may encounter up to ten standardized Medigap plans. Comparing ten plans can be confusing and overwhelming. So instead of evaluating them by just reading the descriptions of each plan, you can use a comparison chart. In the Medigap comparison chart, the benefits of each plan are shown in a neat table where you can easily compare them side by side.
In the chart, the “Yes” means that the plan covers 100% of the benefits. The number of percentage in the chart means that the Medigap plan covers that percentage of the benefit. “No” means the Medigap plan does not cover the benefit. N/A means the benefit is not applicable.
For more in-depth information of each plan, click on each letter.
| Medigap Benefits | Medigap Plans | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | B | C | D | F* | G | K | L | M | N | |
| Part A coinsurance and hospital costs up to an additional 365 days after Medicare benefits are used up | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Part B coinsurance or copayment | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 50% | 75% | Yes | Yes*** |
| Blood (first 3 pints) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 50% | 75% | Yes | Yes |
| Part A hospice care coinsurance or copayment | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 50% | 75% | Yes | Yes |
| Skilled nursing facility care coinsurance | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 50% | 75% | Yes | Yes |
| Part A deductible | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | 50% | 75% | 50% | Yes |
| Part B deductible | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
| Part B excess charge | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| Foreign travel exchange (up to plan limits) | No | No | 80% | 80% | 80% | 80% | No | No | 80% | 80% |
| Out-of-pocket limit* | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | $5,560 | $2,780 | N/A | N/A |
Yes = the plan covers 100% of this benefit
No = the policy doesn’t cover that benefit
% = the plan covers that percentage of this benefit
N/A = not applicable
Notes:
The Medigap policy covers coinsurance only after you’ve paid the deductible (unless the Medigap policy also pays the deductible).
*Plan F is also offered in a high deductible variant. If you choose a high deductible variant of Medicare supplement Plan F, you must pay first the Medicare-covered costs up to the deductible amount. That amount is $2,240 in 2018 and will be $2,300 in 2019. You have to pay the deductible amount first before your Medigap plan works to pay anything.
**Medigap Plan will pay 100% of covered services for the rest of the calendar year once you meet the out-of-pocket yearly limit and yearly Part B deductible.
***Plan N covers 100% of the Part B coinsurance, but not the copayment of up to $20 for some office visits and up to a $50 copayment for emergency room visits that don’t result in inpatient admission.
New Updates:
Starting January 1, 2020, Medigap plans C and F will no longer be available to new Medicare enrollees. Starting that date, Medigap plans will no,onger have the permission to cover Part B deductible. You can keep your plan if you already own a policy of either of the two plans, including the high deductible variant of Plan F, before January 1, 2020.
Which Medigap plans has the most enrollees?
Medigap policies continue to increase in sales every year. In 2017, 13.6 million lives were covered by Medicare supplement insurance policy. Medicare Supplement Plan F has continued to be the most popular plan type among the ten, comprising the 55% of total Medigap covered lives population.
The image below gives you an idea of how many people trusted Medicare Supplement plans as a source of healthcare coverage. You can use this data in comparing plans by knowing how many people have decided to enroll in the plan that you like.
Why do you need to compare plans?
As mentioned earlier, you have ten choices in Medigap plans. Each plan provides different levels of benefits, and some offer additional coverage. One of the reasons why you need to compare is to find the best Medicare Supplement plan that answers to most of your needs. You can only learn about it and narrow down your choices when you compare plans with each other.
Who needs to compare?
Those who are considering to get a Medicare supplement plan should do this task. People who will soon turn 65 and become Medigap eligible can also start comparing ahead of time.
When is the right time to compare Medigap plans?
It is ideal to compare Medigap plans before your open enrollment period arrives. It is best done ahead of time…
- So you’ll have an ample time to decide or seek for the best Medigap plan.
- To ensure that you will not miss your open enrollment period.
- To eliminate the pressure of having to choose from a lot of options in a limited time
- Because it will help you avoid costly mistakes from getting the wrong option.
Who can help you compare?
We can! We, at FreeMedSuppQuotes, would love to help you in choosing the best Medicare Supplement plan based on your personal needs. To get started, just send us a Medigap quote request and one of our licensed Medicare Supplement agents will reach out to you.