Understanding Medicare Supplement Insurance (2024)

FAQs

How does supplemental insurance work for Medicare? ›

To purchase Medicare Supplement Insurance (Medigap) you must be enrolled in Medicare Part A and Part B. Medicare Supplement Insurance provides coverage for gaps in medical costs not covered by Medicare. Medicare Supplement plans are standardized and offer various benefits to help offset your healthcare cost.

While Medigap policies generally offer extensive coverage, they also come with higher premium costs. In addition to your standard Medicare premiums (Part B and, if applicable, Part A), you'll need to pay a separate premium for your Medigap policy.

Plans F, G and N are the most popular Medicare Supplement Insurance plan types. Plan F offers the most coverage of the standardized types, but it's not available to new Medicare members. For people who turned 65 in 2020 or later, Plan G is the highest-coverage Medigap plan type available.

You might wonder why you would need supplemental insurance if you have Medicare. However, while Medicare covers a large share of your health care bills, it will not pay for everything. That's where having some extra insurance can help.

Plan F, Plan G and Plan N are the most popular types of Medicare Supplement plans. Medicare Supplement Plan F is the most comprehensive Medigap option available, providing beneficiaries with 100% coverage of Medicare-covered medical expenses after Original Medicare pays its portion.

A Medigap plan (also called a Medicare Supplement), sold by private companies, can help pay some of the health care costs Original Medicare doesn't cover, like copayments, coinsurance and deductibles.

Medicare Supplement plans, also known as “Medigap,” help pay your share of medical costs not paid by Original Medicare, like copayments, coinsurance and deductibles. Some Medigap plans may also assist in paying for home healthcare , durable medical equipment (DME) , hospital costs and lab costs.

Restrictive networks

In some cases, you'll have a higher share of costs when you see an out-of-network doctor. In other cases, you're not covered at all if you go out of network. This is particularly important if you travel a lot because Medicare Advantage plans generally don't provide out-of-state coverage.

Is Medicare Supplement Plan G worth it? Medigap Plan G is often more expensive than other plan types because it covers such a wide range of benefits. Whether it's worth it to you depends on the specifics of prices available to you and the value you place on Plan G's added coverage.

Which is better, Plan C or Plan G? ›

For example, if you want coverage for the Part B deductible, the best Medicare supplement policy would be Plan C. However, if you want to cover Part B excess charges, then Plan G would be the best choice.

Plan G covers nearly all costs not covered by Original Medicare, including: Part A coinsurance and hospital costs up to an additional 365 days after a person uses all their Medicare benefits. Part B copays and/or coinsurance. The first three pints of blood (if needed)

Medicare supplemental insurance can help fill that gap. For example, if you still find yourself having to pay for deductibles, copays and more — even after you apply your other insurance types — then a supplemental plan could be worth it for you and your loved ones.

Medicare doesn't typically cover 100% of your medical costs. Like most health insurance, Medicare generally comes with out-of-pocket costs including copayments, coinsurance, and deductibles. As you'll learn in this article, Original Medicare (Part A and Part B) costs can really add up.

Medigap doesn't cover everything. Medigap plans generally don't cover: Long-term care (like non-skilled care you get in a nursing home) Vision or dental care.

Can I combine employer health insurance with Medicare? If you or your spouse are working and covered through an employer, you can also decide to keep this coverage and enroll in Original Medicare, Part A and/or Part B to get additional health coverage.

If you have a higher income, you'll pay an additional premium amount for Medicare Part B and Medicare prescription drug coverage. We call the additional amount the “income-related monthly adjustment amount.” Here's how it works: Part B helps pay for your doctors' services and outpatient care.

Once you buy a policy, you'll keep it as long as you pay your Medigap premiums. All standardized Medigap policies are automatically renewed every year, even if you have health problems. Your Medigap insurance company can only drop you if: You stop paying your premiums.