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Medicare Supplement, or Medigap
Keep Original Medicare, see any doctor who accepts it, and hand most of the leftover bill to a second plan.
Original Medicare pays its share and leaves you the rest, with no annual limit on what the rest can add up to. A Medicare Supplement plan sits behind it and picks up most of that remainder: the deductibles, the coinsurance, the copayments. You keep Original Medicare, and you keep the freedom to use any provider in the country who accepts it.
The window that closes once
When you are 65 or older and enrolled in Part B, a six-month Medigap Open Enrollment Period opens. During those six months you can buy any Supplement plan sold in your state. No carrier can turn you down, charge you more, or exclude a pre-existing condition.
After it closes, that protection is gone. In most states carriers can then require medical underwriting, which means your health history can raise your price or get your application declined outright.
This window opens one time. It is the single most consequential deadline on this page.
Every letter is the same everywhere
Medigap plans are standardized by the federal government. Plan G from one carrier covers exactly what Plan G from any other carrier covers. The benefits are set by law, not by the company.
What does change between carriers is the premium, how sharply that premium rises as you age, and how the company treats you when you call. Those are the only variables worth shopping.
This is why comparing Supplement plans is a different exercise from comparing Advantage plans. With Advantage you are comparing benefits. With Medigap you are comparing price and carrier behavior on identical coverage.
What a Supplement plan does not cover
- Prescription drugs, which need a separate Part D plan
- Routine dental, vision, and hearing
- Long-term custodial care
- Private-duty nursing
The lettered plans people actually buy
There are ten lettered plans. In practice most people choosing today land on one of these.
| Plan | What it covers | Who tends to choose it |
|---|---|---|
| Plan G | Everything Medicare leaves behind except the annual Part B deductible, which you pay once a year. | The most complete option available to anyone newly eligible. The common default. |
| Plan N | Nearly the same as Plan G, but you pay a small copay at some office and emergency room visits, and it does not cover Part B excess charges. | People willing to accept small charges at the point of care for a lower monthly premium. |
| Plan A | The basic benefit set every carrier must offer. Does not cover the Part A deductible. | People who want minimum supplemental coverage at the lowest premium. |
| Plan F | Covers everything, including the Part B deductible. | Closed. Only available to people who were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020. Existing enrollees can keep it. |
Plan availability varies by state, and some states standardize Medigap differently. A licensed agent can tell you which lettered plans are sold where you live.
What drives the price
Same benefits, very different premiums. These are the levers.
How the premium ages
Attained-age policies rise as you get older. Issue-age policies lock to your age at purchase. Community-rated policies charge everyone the same. The cheapest plan today is not always the cheapest at 80.
Your ZIP code
Premiums are set by state and often by ZIP code, because underlying medical costs differ.
Which company sells it
The benefits are identical by law, so the price gap between carriers on the same letter is pure shopping opportunity.
We do not publish premium figures on this page. They change by carrier, state, ZIP code, age, and rating method, and any number printed here would be wrong for most readers. A licensed agent can quote the plans actually sold where you live.
Supplement or Advantage
The two routes answer the same problem in opposite ways. Neither is better in the abstract.
| Medicare Supplement | Medicare Advantage | |
|---|---|---|
| Choice of doctor | Any provider in the country who accepts Medicare | The plan's network, which varies by plan and county |
| Monthly cost | A premium every month, on top of Part B | Often no plan premium, still Part B |
| Cost when you use care | Very little, and very predictable | Copays and coinsurance that vary by service |
| Prescription drugs | Not included. You add a standalone Part D plan | Usually built in |
| Extras | Medical costs only | Often dental, vision, hearing, fitness |
| Changing later | Easy to get in during your six-month window, harder afterward | You can change every year during Annual Enrollment |
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Medicare TPMO Compliance Statement
Complete Family Protection and its affiliates are not connected with or endorsed by any government entity or the federal Medicare program. Complete Family Protection represents Medicare Advantage HMO, PPO, and PFFS organizations and stand alone prescription drug plans that have a Medicare contract. Enrollment depends on the plan's contract renewal. While we have a database of every Medicare plan nationwide and can help you to search among all plans, we have contracts with many but not all plans. As a result, we do not offer every plan available in your area. Currently we represent 50 organizations which offer 15,778 products nationwide. We search and recommend all plans, even those we don't directly offer. You can contact a licensed Complete Family Protection agent to find out the number of products available in your specific area. Please contact Medicare.gov, 1-800-MEDICARE, or your local State Health Insurance Program (SHIP) to get information on all of your options.